Swimming with the Sharks
by Jagger3
Summary: Tavros is a new employee at The Aquarium, his dream job. But one day he discovers a secret kept behind a locked door, and suddenly he's sucked into the depths of a watery world that wasn't on his contract. It's hard to keep your head above water when there are people determined to drag you under. Rated M for violence and sexual themes.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

Tavros took a breath, clutching his resume, and tried to calm himself down. It was going to be okay. His credentials were outstanding and he had people who could speak highly of him if needed. He'd been to vet school and worked at numerous jobs with aquatic life. Everything was going to be fine. And yet he couldn't stop his nerves from acting up. This wasn't just some itty bitty aquarium, star attraction of a speck of a town. No, this was THE Aquarium; the one everyone went to, children talked about, adults dreamed of working there, home of some of the most exotic and rare aquatic life the world had to offer. They had sea goats and manatees and sharks and octopus and jelly fish and giant squid and whales and even penguins. There were otters and fish and sting rays and—Tavros shook his head, dispelling the mental list. He needed to focus.

"Dr. Nitram?"

Tavros looked up to see a man standing before him, arms folded like the blades of scissors, "Yes?"

"Ms. Peixes is ready to see you now." He sniffed, looking down at Tavros over his nose, lips curled slightly in distaste. He had numerous rings on his fingers and his clothes smelled like soap and lemon, instead of fish and salt water. He even had dyed a streak in his hair and then slicked it all back with copious amounts of hair gel, making him look more like some rich daddy's boy than an employee at THE Aquarium.

"Thanks." Tavros stood and walked into the office of the woman who owned the place of his dreams. The second he stepped inside his face lit up and he couldn't stop a smile from curling up the corners of his lips. In the center of the room was an enormous aquarium filled with coral and tropical fish. The fish flashed this way and that with the sharp shine of silver.

"Like it?"

Tavros tore his eyes away, feeling a little guilty, "Yes, it's beautiful." He walked over to the desk and held his hand out, "I'm Dr. Tavros Nitram."

The woman behind the desk took his hand and shook it firmly, and the smell of fish and salt water hit him instantly. "I'm Feferi Peixes, nice to meet you Tavros! Please have a seat." She gestured in front of her and Tavros sat. She was wearing a clean cut suit, despite the fishy smell, that was lined with hot pink which matched the rims of her glasses. Her hair was braided out of the way and she wore hot pink lipstick to match. Behind her desk was another aquarium, and inside it was a cuttlefish.

Tavros handed her his resume and watched as she skimmed through it, feeling his insides squirm like wet seaweed.

"Oh my glub you worked as a marine biologist studying seals?" She said, looking impressed, "If you don't mind my asking, why do you want to work here instead?"

This question was thankfully easy to answer, "Because I love working with animals, not studying them from inside a cold metal container. I love interacting with them and helping them and letting them get to know and trust me."

"I sea. Well Tavros you definitely are over qualified for the job. We'd be happy to have you here!" She stood up and offered her hand, which Tavros took in relief.

"Yes! Oh yes thank you very much!" He couldn't believe this stroke of good luck, and could only half way pay attention to her instructions of where to go.

"He is the janitor but he's been here the longest and knows the most, so he'll show you around. I hope you don't mind, but I'm going to throw you to the sharks today." She grinned and Tavros smiled.

"Not at all."

The janitor turned out to be a young man who looked like he was constantly in a bad temper. "Listen up fuckass," he said, startling Tavros with the language, "this aquarium is fucking huge and you'll be in the west wing, got it? So stay the fuck there. No wandering around. You feed the fish, check the fish out, and then get the fuck out of there before they decide they're still hungry. Got it?"

"Yes." Tavros said, hoisting his gear over his shoulder and following the grumpy man, "Um, what's your name?"

"Karkat Vantas." The man snapped, halting so suddenly Tavros almost ran into him, "Here's the fish, now don't fuck this up." And then he stomped off, the keys on his belt clanking with each step.

"Thanks…." Tavros said, and then turned to the tank. It was the visitors section, so it was merely a massive sheet of glass which showed large hunks of coral and some sea weed. But Tavros knew where to look, and he broke into a smile as a sleek bodied shark swam past.

A little boy was standing by the glass, watching with opened mouth amazement as the shark swam past. He reminded Tavros a little of himself, and he couldn't help but walk over, "Do you like sharks?"

The boy eyed him nervously, "I'm not supposed to talk to strangers…"

"No you definitely shouldn't." Tavros agreed, and then knelt down, "I work here though," the words filled him with pride, "want me to show you my badge?" He held out the laminated card he'd received with his name and the words 'employee, doctor' written on it.

The boy studied it seriously and then handed it back, "Sharks are my favorite."

"Can you name that one?"

The boy turned back to the glass and nodded, "That's a Tiger Shark. You know, because of the stripes on its back and stuff."

"You're pretty smart." Tavros smiled, watching the shark glide by, "Did you know it's the most dangerous shark there is?"

"I thought the Great White was the most dangerous?" The boy asked, his nose practically pressed against the glass.

"Actually the Great White is a rather docile shark, but the Tiger Shark is really nasty. It'll eat anything, even birds resting on the water. Did you know that the Tiger Shark is the second largest shark out of the top three most dangerous sharks? They're also called the swimming trash cans."

The boy giggled, "They eat trash?"

"They eat everything. They've been found with tin cans, shoes and even an alarm clock in its stomach!"

"Woah…"

Tavros smiled and stood, leaving the boy gaping at the swimming monster separated only by a thin sheet of glass. In the staff room he changed into his wet suit and grabbed his tank and mask, heading over to the less dangerous Lemon shark tank. Normally you didn't have to get in the water with the animals, but this was something Tavros loved doing.

He sunk into the cool water, fastening his breathing mask to his lips and submerging himself with the bag of fish. Lemon sharks were some of the more docile creatures, and Tavros fed them by hand as they swam around him, though he was wearing very thick gloves, just in case. Once all the food had been dished out, Tavros took a moment to swim with the sharks, running his hands long their slippery, smooth sides. They paid no mind to him, used to people after being raised in captivity, and Tavros resurfaced with as many fingers as he started out with.

After peeling off his wetsuit and using a towel to dry his hair in the staff room, Tavros began to look through all the documents they had. He learned that in addition to the Tiger shark and the Lemon sharks, the Aquarium also had Hammer Heads, Great Whites, Shortfin Makos, Bulls, and one Angel shark. They all had relatively good health records and Tavros knew how to care for them all. With a satisfied sigh, he put his things away and looked around the small room. It had a view to the Tiger shark tank, which gave the room a watery blue look. There were numerous file cabinets and one couch that looked like it had seen better days. There was a door that Tavros had walked through to enter and another that looked like it hadn't been used in a while.

Curious, Tavros walked over and tried the handle, surprised to find it locked. He went back to the bag he'd been given and pulled out his set of keys. He'd been told which had opened what, mostly one key was used for all maintenance doors and special keys were used to the tanks. Picking out the maintenance key Tavros tried it, only to find the door resisting his efforts to unlock it. Shrugging, he put the keys away and grabbed his bag, turning out the lights as he left.

The Angel shark was notorious for its hide-and-seek skills, and even Tavros had to really look to find him. It was like a game of 'where's Waldo' if Waldo could camouflage himself under sand and mud, waiting to swallow you in one gulp. The Angel shark, Tavros knew, would wait under a thin layer of muck for a fish, or the person trying to feed him, to swim by and then explode upwards, it's gaping maw swallowing the employee whole. That was an experience Tavros could live without.

So instead he sat on the edge of the tank and reached into a bucket, pulling out a large silvery fish that flopped and twisted frantically in his grasp. "Sorry buddy." Tavros said mournfully, and tossed lunch inside.

The fish darted away and seemed to hover for a moment, before swimming along the bottom, thinking it had gotten away.

As it passed over an expanse of sand, the ground suddenly burst to life, consuming the poor fish before it knew what was going on. The Angel shark settled once more on the bottom of the tank, looking quite pleased with itself as it waited for dessert.

Tavros made a note to himself that the Angel shark seemed perfectly healthy, and waved bye to it as he picked up the now empty bucket and walked off to dispose of the water inside.

He'd been working here for almost two months now, and his job had been expanded a few weeks ago to sting rays as well. He enjoyed sting rays; they seemed more likably than the cold blooded creatures with more teeth than strictly necessary. Once he was done feeding them, he'd stay a while and swim around, smiling around his air piece as their gentle flaps would wash over him, always mindful of their barbed tails. At one point he's spotted the same boy from the shark tank watching him play with the sting rays. Tavros then dove down to the bottom of the pond-like tank and picked up a small, serrated sting ray tooth, resurfaced, and gave it to the boy who looked so unbelievably happy.

Feeling like he'd just made someone's day, Tavros was in high spirits as he returned to the tiny staff room behind the Tiger Shark tank. He had walked in and peeled off his wet suit, pulling on a pair of boxers right when he heard a voice.

"God dammit again? How the ever loving fish fuck did you even manage to get your ball up in the fucking rafters? I swear you do this on purpose you little shit."

Tavros blinked, pausing with his t-shirt in one hand as he looked around to see where the source of the noise was coming from. Something caught his eye, and Tavros blinked in surprise as he spotted the locked door was ajar.

The voice came again, "There. I got your fucking ball for you—AGH NO DON'T HUG ME GOD DAMMIT YOU'RE ALL WET!" There was a loud splash followed by a string of swear words, and Tavros crept closer to the door.

"Alright yeah it's good to see you too, you obnoxious shit. Try not to get your ball stuck in the god damn rafters again, alright?"

Tavros peeked in cautiously. It was another room, bigger than Tavros had expected, with a large pool taking up most of the room. The janitor, Karkat Vantas, was standing with his back to Tavros, scolding whatever was in the pool. Was this another tank? Why was it closed off? Karkat shifted his weight and Tavros jerked back, heart pounding. Whatever the reason, it was obvious that door was locked to keep people out. He could hear Karkat's footsteps approaching, and Tavros made a split second decision to dive behind the couch right as the surly tempered janitor walked in.

"Don't give me that look, I'll come see you tomorrow." Karkat grumbled, and then shut the door firmly. There was a small 'click' of the lock and then he was gone, leaving Tavros alone.

Standing up, Tavros hastily pulled on his shirt and hopped into his shorts, buttoning them as he walked over to the door. He placed his ear on the door and held his breath, closing his eyes and straining to hear through the thick metal to no avail.

Tavros sighed and stood back, eyeing the lock with a scowl. It looked like a simple door lock. Maybe…maybe he could—no! No what was he thinking? Breaking into a room he wasn't supposed to be in was bad. But technically since he worked here…he'd been told to stay in the west wing of the Aquarium. Wasn't this the west wing?

Tavros walked away and grabbed his bag, stuffing his things inside and leaving. Tomorrow he'd check behind the door.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Oh man he shouldn't be doing this. This wasn't right. Yet the paper clip he'd bent still continued to wiggle in the lock, and Tavros cursed himself for his curiosity. The lock clicked, and Tavros froze. He hadn't expected that to work.

Pulling the paper clip out, Tavros stared at the door. He'd gone this far…slowly his hand closed around the knob and he cautiously turned it, opening the door just a crack.

Nobody was inside, and all he could hear was the occasional splash of something playing along the water line of the pool. Must be a seal, since Karkat was ranting about a ball. Tavros loved seals, and walruses and sea lions and other flipper things; but seals were definitely one of his favorites. Hoping for a seal, Tavros slipped his body inside and noticed that the room was surprisingly bare. Moving forwards, Tavros peered into the massive pool. It was about the size of those performing pools that orcas and whales and seals played in, but there were no bleachers here. One side of the pool even had the ramp that let the people performing with the animals easily get into the pool, or let the animals get easily out. Like seals.

But the thing had finally surfaced, flipping its tail along the water line and gripping a large, red rubber ball. And it definitely wasn't a seal.

A smooth tail looked muscular and powerful as it cut through the water, scales gleaming in the lights hanging from the rafters above. The tail tapered off in the bottom and split into two leaf-shaped flowing ends that curved and flowed with the water. The top of the tail connected with the smooth torso of a man-like creature, ending where the belly button would be if the creature had one. Its skin was a light grayish purple color, and up its sides it had faded white stripes. When it turned over to dive again, Tavros saw the stripes continued along its back, almost like tracing its rib cage and meeting up in the middle to form a single white line, marking the spine. Its arms had a similar design, darker purple on the top and lighter on the underside, with crescent moon white stripes cuffing the arm all the way down to the hand. Fingers were connected with thin webbing, and its nails were yellow and very sharp looking. The creature tossed the ball in the air and brought its tail up, letting water shower down like thousands of diamonds as it slapped the ball across the pool, and then dove after it.

It even had hair, though it was wet, Tavros could tell it was black and probably (when dry) rather unruly.

The creature resurfaced, ball clenched between its hands, and looked up to throw it back to other end of the pool. Then it spotted Tavros.

It was hard to tell who looked more shocked, and the two stared at each other with round eyes.

Its face…it had pure yellow eyes with a small black pupil in the center, and the skin was a softer lavender/gray like its underside and underarms. There were small white line tips that came about an inch down from his hairline, almost looking like war paint. Its lips were parted in surprise, showing a set of shockingly sharp teeth, almost like a shark. But what was noticeable were three scars slashed parallel across the creature's face, from just above its left eye down to the bottom of the right side of its chin.

It, Tavros noticed with a jolt, was a he.

For a minute nobody moved, and all that could be heard was the gentle slapping of water against the edge of the pool.

Its—his—body was thin and lean looking, but definitely well defined and strong from swimming constantly. He didn't have nipples either, leaving his chest and belly looking strangely smooth.

He was moving, and Tavros felt himself stiffen in fear as he/it/the creature cautiously approached, keeping to the far side of the pool. It looked scared, Tavros realized, and he instantly felt a pang of regret for upsetting him.

"Um, I'm Tavros." He said, wondering if it—he—could talk. When he said nothing, Tavros continued, his voice automatically becoming soft and soothing, like when he helped frightened animals at the clinic, "It's okay, I won't hurt you." Tavros showed his hands and slowly moved to the edge of the pool, sinking to his knees and then sitting cross legged at the edge. The water smelled like salt, so it—he—was an ocean animal.

The creature had stopped moving and was directly across from Tavros, quite a distance away, almost the length of a pool.

"I work here, I'm a vet and I also help out with the animals." Tavros said, avoiding eye contact and addressing the water. "I work with the sharks and sting rays and what not. Sometimes I clean the tanks, but that's usually left to other people." Tavros talked quietly for a while, telling the creature about himself and how he'd gone to school and the things he'd done while studying seals. He noticed the creature looked decidedly less alarmed, and by the time Tavros had wrapped up his life studying seals, the creature had moved almost half the way closer.

Encouraged, Tavros let his fingers dangle in the water, making little ripples. The creature was almost completely submerged, just his eyes peeking up from the waterline. "I have to go now actually, the Lemon sharks need feeding. But I liked talking to you." He smiled, still careful not to look directly at him. "Would it be alright if I came back?"

The creature continued to stare at him, and Tavros slowly got to his feet, "I'll see you tomorrow."

He walked back to the door slowly, not turning around once—though it was extremely tempting. Closing the door behind him, Tavros felt his strength leave his legs and he leaned against the wall, gasping. What was that thing? He? It? Whatever it was, it was…fascinating. Tavros had seen the intelligence in those yellow eyes, and the look of shock on his face when Tavros had entered had been almost…human. And he'd listened. He'd listened to Tavros speaking, watched him, moved closer. It understood; Tavros was certain. But what was he?

Karkat knew, Tavros realized with a jolt. Karkat knew all about it—him. Him. He was a him. Not an it. Did he have a name?

Shaking his head Tavros grabbed his things and left to go feed the Lemon sharks.

"Hello, it's me again. Tavros." Tavros sat in the same spot and looked out over the seemingly empty pool. "You're hiding, aren't you?" He waited, and then smiled, "Okay, but I bet I can find you. Let's see…" He scrutinized the water, his eyes seeking out simple disturbances in the flow. He could see darker shadows along the pool floor, no doubt rocks and coral and things for the creature to play in. So he would most likely hide there. And close enough to hear, so on this side of the pool. "I bet you're on the half of the pool closest to me." Tavros called out, his voice echoing over the water.

Nothing happened.

Tavros scanned the pool, his eyes raking over the dark shapes in the water for any sign of the creature. But to his surprise, he couldn't find him. After another five minutes of searching, Tavros leaned back and laughed, "Alright you win."

A dark shape detached itself from a large bed of coral and swung shockingly fast up to the surface, breaking the water line smoothly and revealing the alien face of the creature.

"Hello." Tavros said, smiling. "You hide as well as an Angel shark. I'm sure you know about them, since you're from the ocean and all." He looked around the pool, "Unless you were born here…?" The creature gave him no clue, just watched him with interest, his chin resting on the waterline as his powerful tail slowly swept back and forth, keeping him afloat.

"Well, and Angel shark is this flat, large fish with needle like teeth that buries itself in the sand and waits for fish or mollusks to approach. And when they do, it springs upwards and gulps them down." Tavros said, "It's a really good hider though, even I can't find it most of the time." He noticed then that the creature's attention had fixated on something near him, and Tavros looked down to see his ball was floating a few feet in front of him. Looking up, Tavros met the creatures gaze. Biting his lower lip, Tavros lay flat on his stomach and stretched out, his finger tips grazing the ball. With a bit of effort he managed to bring it to him. Sitting up and holding the ball, Tavros saw the creature was still staring intently at him. Well…here goes nothing.

Tavros raised the ball over his head, hesitated, and then tossed it towards the creature. He swore quietly the second it left his fingers; he'd thrown it too high.

The creature watched the ball sail closer and sunk down in the water, his eyes narrowed. Then he suddenly lunged upwards, his tail propelling him out of the water and his arms reaching up, catching the ball. His body curved into a U, the ball cradled in the middle, and he hit the water with a massive splash.

"Holy shit…" Tavros blinked as he stared at the massive ripples. He'd just jumped a good two feet out of the water…

The creature emerged, shaking his wet hair from his face and held up the ball. Then he smiled, and Tavros couldn't help but laugh.

The creature tossed the ball up and used his tail to bat it over to Tavros again, and the two of them played like this for hours until Tavros was soaking wet and couldn't throw another ball to save his life.

He lay on the wet cement, a foot or two from the edge of the pool, giggling as he pushed his soaking wet Mohawk from his face, "Man, I don't think I've ever had this much fun with a ball before." He heard a gentle slosh of water and looked over, only to suck in his breath in surprise.

The creature was right at the edge of the pool, arms crossed over the side and chin resting on them, watching Tavros with interest. His shoulders were hunched and glistening with water, his hair falling in his face, and his teeth looking sharper up close.

"You're definitely a group type of fish," Tavros said quietly, "I don't really know what you are, but that much is clear. So why are you all alone?"

The creature gave him a sad look, his tail flicking behind him.

"Do you have a name? I know Karkat comes in here, has he named you?"

At the mention of Karkat the creature perked up and beamed at Tavros, "You know Karkat?"

Tavros' eyes shot open and his jaw hit the floor, "Yu-you, you can talk!"


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

"C'mere little guy, it's okay—there we go." Tavros shifted the sting ray onto the stretcher and sighed in satisfaction as it was lifted out, barbed tail flapping in protest. Tavros followed shortly after, spitting out some water from the sting ray tank. That was something you certainly didn't want to swallow. Yuck. He hauled himself out and sat on the edge, kicking off his flippers and grabbing them before he went away.

"Oi, move your ass."

Tavros jumped up and hastily moved out of the way, letting the short tempered janitor scrub down the now vacant area he's been sitting on. His eyes lingered on Karkat briefly, and then he moved away, eager to get out his wetsuit and into something dry.

Once he was inside the staff room, Tavros quickly changed and grabbed his lunch bag before slipping into the other room. He shut the door behind him and walked to the edge of the pool, kicking off his sandals and letting his legs dangle in the cool water. "Gamzee! I'm here."

"I know you are, my brother, I heard ya in the other room." Gamzee surfaced a few feet away, grinning excitedly as he used his ball to help him float, giving his tail a rest, "Whatcha got in the bag?"

"My lunch. People have to eat too." Tavros smiled, opening it and pulling out his sandwich. He unwrapped it and picked up a half, biting into it hungrily. All that swimming around after sick sting rays really made ones appetite increase.

"What's that?" Gamzee let go of his ball and swam closer, his arms in front of him as he look curiously at the thing in Tavros' hands.

"A peanut butter and jelly sandwich." Tavros mumbled, swallowing and licking some purple jelly from his lips. It had been a shock at first, when Gamzee had first opened his mouth to ask a question, and Tavros had stared at him in a state of shock until Gamzee splashed him with water. Apparently he could talk, though he only spoke to Karkat since he was the only person who ever visited him. Gamzee hadn't known what to think of Tavros, though he liked him, but the second Tavros mentioned Karkat, Gamzee had figured he was fine. Anyone who knew his best bro had to be okay. And Tavros had found out quickly that once Gamzee started talking, he didn't stop.

He was from the ocean, some fishermen had caught him tangled in their shrimping nets and hauled him back to land. Gamzee didn't like to talk about it, though he did mention that was how he'd gotten those scars on his face. He said he'd been a 'grub' when that had happened (whatever that was) and had grown up in this aquarium when some nice people rescued him from the fishermen. He also said he didn't remember much of anything from the experience, and what he did know had been told to him by Karkat. He never got to see anything but this room however, and once a week Karkat came to clean his pool. Food was routinely delivered by a chute and Gamzee was incredibly lonely. Karkat sometimes stopped by and talked to him, which were the best motherfucking parts of the day as far as Gamzee was concerned. (Tavros noticed that Gamzee seemed to have picked up his swearing from the crabby janitor too). But then this shy little bro came in and started keeping him company, which was the best miracle of all.

After all this had been explained, Tavros couldn't stop from voicing his amazement, which earned a shrug from the creature in the water. 'it's just a story, bro' he'd said, and then asked if they could play with the ball some more.

Tavros looked now at Gamzee's fascinated stare, fixated on his sandwich. Peanut butter and jelly shouldn't be too bad for…well, whatever he was. Gamzee himself didn't know, nor did he seem to care. Tavros reached down and picked up the other half of his sandwich and offered it to him.

Gamzee blinked and slowly reached out, his fingers with the translucent webbing closing around the food and bringing it over to his face. He sniffed it curiously, and then took a giant bite right out of the middle. "Mngpth!"

"Heh, you're welcome." Tavros finished off his lunch and sipped on a juice box as he watched Gamzee thoroughly enjoy the sandwich. Once it was gone, Gamzee swam closer to Tavros and rested on the side of the pool, his tail floating lazily behind him.

"What's it like out there?"

He always asked questions like that, and Tavros did his best to answer, "Well, in the Aquarium is nice and dark and cool, lots of tanks with fish are everywhere. People walk around and look into the tanks to see the fish."

"What sort of fish?"

"All sorts. There are sharks, string rays, whales, jellyfish—"

"Jellyfish? Did I just eat that?" Gamzee asked, looking horrified.

"No! Oh god no. That kind of jelly is when you take fruit and squish it into a pulp." Tavros explained, "Jellyfish are…well the top of them is like a half circle and kind of squishy, and from the flat part of the half circle a bunch of tentacles dangle down. And if you touch the tentacles, they sting you."

"That's cool." Gamzee grinned, "Are there any fish like me?" He raised his tail out of the water and smacked it back down.

"Um, no, not really." Tavros had spent hours researching through the Aquarium's documents for papers on Gamzee, but had turned up with nothing. "I guess the closest thing I could call you would be a mermaid. Or I guess merman. But you don't really look like one exactly. More like a…seal mixed with a merman and maybe a Tiger shark, since you have those cool markings."

Gamzee looked down at the white crescent moon markings on his forearms, "What's a seal?"

"A big blubbery animal with teeth like yours, only bigger."

"Woah." Gamzee's eyes were wide, "I bet they're the most terrifying thing out there."

"Ha, not at all. They mostly sit around all day and chill out. But not much is known about them when they're in the water." Tavros loved talking about his knowledge of sea creatures, especially to someone who seemed as fascinated as he was, "Tiger sharks are more dangerous."

"How dangerous?"

"Extremely. Though they don't really go for people."

"Huh…" Gamzee rested his head in his arms. "Karkat doesn't really tell me a lot about stuff, but he sometimes tells me about things going on outside. He went to a celebration or something this weekend, and brought me back a balloon." Gamzee's face lit up, "It was red and it looked so cool! But it floated up to the rafters and Karkat yelled at me again."

Tavros glanced up but didn't see it. Karkat most likely got it back for Gamzee, despite yelling at him.

"Hey, Tav?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for talking to me and shit. I know you've got shit ta do and whatnot, but you still come anyway. Means a lot."

Tavros smiled warmly at Gamzee, "Of course, I like talking to you."

Gamzee grinned happily and pushed himself away from the wall, swimming over to the platform, "Wanna swim with me?"

"I, uh, what?" Tavros said, taken aback as he watched Gamzee sit himself in the shallow water at the base of the ramp.

"Swim." Gamzee said, "It's a motherfucking fun thing to do."

"I suppose…I could. At least for a little bit." Tavros pulled off his shirt and shorts, leaving him in a pair of boxers as he walked around to the platform.

"Hey, why are you wearing two pairs of pants?"

"One is underwear, the other one is pants." Tavros said, walking up to mid-calf in water to where Gamzee was sitting. His eyes moved over his body and towards his tail, mesmerized by the glimmering scales.

Gamzee followed Tavros' line of sight, "Do you wanna touch it?" he asked suddenly.

"Is that okay?" Tavros looked at Gamzee, receiving a grin and a nod in return.

Tavros moved to Gamzee's side and knelt next to him, biting his lower lip as he looked at the muscular, powerful tail lying before him. The scales were overlapping like that of a fish, but nowhere near the same in appearance. Each scale almost seemed to be its own shade of purple, ranging from lavender to the darkest of sunset indigo. They overlapped in a way that the middle was lighter, progressing to darkness until the back was a beautiful, rich dark purple. Tavros gently placed a hand where Gamzee's thighs should be and ran his fingers along the scales.

There weren't at all like fish scales. These were harder along the front, becoming softer and more flexible along the sides—obviously for movement. Tavros had been right about the muscle; he could feel the strength behind this incredible tail, capable of propelling a merman out of the water to catch a ball.

"It's amazing." Tavros whispered, drawing his hand away from the smooth, shiny scales.

"I'd trade it instantly for a pair of those motherfucking legs." Gamzee sighed, "It's just a tail bro. But legs…those fuckers are freedom."

Tavros looked up at Gamzee's sad expression, "Yeah, I know what you mean." He sat beside the merman, their shoulders almost brushing as they stared out at the empty pool. "I was in an accident a few years ago. It was really bad and I almost lost my legs. The doctors managed to save them, but nobody thought I'd walk again. I was trapped in a wheelchair—a seat with wheels—and I couldn't walk."

Gamzee watched Tavros quietly, his golden eyes trained on his friend's face.

"But I didn't let it get me down. You know, I have a brother. He told me, after the accident, that life is about what you make of it. Something bad happens; fine. Sulk a bit. Feel bad for yourself. But then pick your ass up off the ground and turn it into something positive." Tavros smiled and looked down, "He helped me a lot then. And I learned to walk. I can't run or jump or even climb things that well, but I can swim. Swimming was what helped me rehabilitate. So I guess you could say swimming is my freedom."

"Shit Tav…" Gamzee's voice faltered. He had no idea what to say to that.

Tavros turned and smiled happily at Gamzee, "So basically, don't feel too bad, okay? I hate seeing you upset."

"Alright bro." Gamzee grinned and flipped his tail, splashing Tavros, "It does have its uses after all."

"Augh, hey!" Tavros sputtered, and then splashed Gamzee.

The merman laughed and dove back into the pool, swimming around Tavros as the young man leapt after him. They swam after each other, their noisy laughter and splashing echoing in the large room. When Tavros got tired, Gamzee let him wrap his arms around his shoulders and float along behind him.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Tavros hummed cheerfully as he ran his hands over the string ray, "See? I told you it would be okay. Just one shot, you big baby." He grinned as the string ray's flaps wavered in the water, looking like flowing curtains attached to this ancient animal, "And now you can rejoin your friends, isn't that nice?" He walked with him as some stronger volunteers took the sting ray's stretcher back to the main pool, letting him slide in. Tavros watched with a smile as the ray immediately sought out its friends, no doubt telling them about the ordeal it had just been through at the hands of the lunatic doctor.

Well, time to feed the Tiger shark. Tavros left and went to get the bucket of bloody fish, not minding the smell as he walked to the feed trap above the Tiger's tank. Opening it up, he dumped the contents into the water and then shut the door. Easy enough.

Feeding the lemons was next—something Tavros enjoyed. He spent a few extra minutes with one of the pregnant females, doing some quick, easy checks to make sure she was alright. She'd have to be moved to an isolated tank later on, but for now she seemed content enough. Tavros snuck her an extra fish and then left to go peel off his wet suit and go visit his other fish friend.

Once his dry clothes were on, Tavros stepped back into the room where he spent countless hours playing with his new friend. "Gamzee!"

"About time! Ugh, what's that smell?"

"I had to feed the Tiger shark, sorry." Tavros grinned, sitting at his customary spot at the edge of the pool.

"You feed him," Gamzee sniffed, "guts? Fish guts?"

"He'll eat anything really." Tavros shrugged, "And they were leftovers from the Great White."

"Bruce."

"His name is not Bruce!"

"Karkat calls him Bruce."

"I have no idea why."

Gamzee grinned and swam up to Tavros holding onto the side of the wall, "So wanna swim with me again today?"

"Actually I have a better idea, but it's for later and I need to be dry." Tavros said mysteriously, kicking his legs under water.

"What is it?" Gamzee asked, his eyes brightening.

"It's a surprise." Tavros replied, sticking his tongue out playfully when Gamzee pouted.

"Hey, I got something to ask you. If it's all cool with you, could I touch your legs?"

Tavros blinked, "Oh, yeah sure. Hang on, I'll go over to the platform." He got up and walked around, watching his friend as he swam eagerly over to the ramp. Tavros rolled up his shorts to about mid thigh and then walked into the water, standing before Gamzee.

Gamzee wasted no time in exploring. His hands were cool and wet over Tavros' legs, and he fought back a shiver as the merman's sharp nails brushed the sensitive skin behind his knee. Gamzee was fascinated, especially with Tavros' knees. He ran his hands over them repeatedly, and grinned like a goof when Tavros stood on one leg and folded the other one up, like a flamingo. "Man that's motherfucking awesome."

"Glad you think so." Tavros chuckled, setting his foot back down.

But what really fascinated Gamzee were Tavros' toes. He asked Tavros to sit, so his friend wouldn't get tired, and then sat there for a good hour with Tavros' feet in his lap, gawking at the strangeness of human feet.

"Man this shit is off the hook. Can you move them?"

Tavros wiggled his toes and Gamzee's eye almost popped, "Holy shit! That's way cool. Can you pick things up with them?"

"Yeah, but not very well."

Gamzee brushed his fingers along the underside of each toe, spreading them apart, bending them, moving Tavros' ankle gently, and all in all just being astounded by the concept of feet.

"Hey, want your surprise now?" Tavros asked, once Gamzee had sated his curiosity for the time being.

"Yeah!"

"Okay, lemme go get it. Oh, and close your eyes." Tavros watched as Gamzee covered his eyes with his hands, grinning hugely, "No peaking!" Tavros called on his way back to the room.

Gamzee sat there quietly, his tail flicking with excitement. Nobody had ever gotten him a surprise before, except for Karkat and that wicked awesome balloon. But Gamzee hadn't been expecting that. It was a whole different thing to be expecting that. Suddenly, he heard the door open, and a soft squeaking noise made him cock his head to the side curiously. What the motherfuck was that? The sound stopped by the edge of the platform, "Tav?"

"Yeah, okay open your eyes."

Gamzee pulled his hands away and stared in confusion, "Is that a…seat with wheels? That thing you had when you couldn't walk?"

"Yeah, a wheelchair." Tavros was grinning ear to ear.

"I don't understand…?"

"I figured you might want to get out of there and go for a little walk. Well," Tavros amended, "I'll be walking. You sort of have to come with me."

"I could…go out?" Gamzee said slowly, his eyes growing huge, "But won't people see?"

"The Aquarium is closed and I'm the only one who works here at the west wing at this hour." Tavros said.

Gamzee felt like a massive bubble was expanding in his chest, "I…fuck…Tavros this is…"

"I know," Tavros walked back into the water and reached down to him, "Now come on, you've been cooped up here for long enough."

The next four hours were the best four hours of Gamzee's life. He fit comfortably in the wheelchair and his tail didn't even drag on the floor, something Tavros had been concerned about. Gamzee had been surprised when Tavros had easily lifted him up out of the water, but Tavros had told him that all those years of wheeling himself around had given him some great upper body strength. Then they'd gone out, and Gamzee felt like his head was on a swivel from trying to see everything at once.

Tavros talked about all the different creatures as they walked by, letting Gamzee sit and stare for as long as he wanted, pushing him along the eerily lit corridors wherever he wanted to go. The merman was like a child, pointing and gasping at everything. Tavros took him to the Tiger shark tank, the Lemon shark tank, and the sting ray pool. He put his hand in the water and coaxed a ray over, letting Gamzee run his hand along the slippery back.

Next, Tavros took him to see the jellyfish, then the seals, penguins, tropical fish, orcas, and finally just took him on a tour of the entire Aquarium. He was extremely careful then, telling Gamzee to keep his voice down in case someone came. He even found a blanket and covered Gamzee's tail, just in case. But luck seemed to be on their side, and Tavros gave Gamzee a full tour without once running into someone. A miracle, as far as Tavros was concerned, but his heart only began to beat normally when they were back in the west wing.

On the way back to Gamzee's room, the merman was strangely quiet. His fingers played with the blanket on his lap and he seemed to be lost in thought. It was only when he'd gotten back into the pool did he finally turn and look at his friend, "Tavros?"

"Yeah?" Tavros knelt down on the side of the pool. He felt tired and a little thirsty from all the talking he did about sea animals.

"Thank you." Gamzee said simply, and then reached up and cupped the back of Tavros' neck, pushing himself out of the water and kissing him briefly on the lips.

Tavros' eyes widened his surprise as Gamzee's hand slipped away and his friend disappeared underwater, "Gamzee?" but he was gone. Standing up, Tavros folded the wheelchair up and carried it out with him, shutting the door quietly behind him. His lips tasted like salt, like the ocean, and suddenly Tavros was exhausted. He set down the wheel chair and stumbled over to the couch, falling into the worn cushions with a sigh of relief.

A lot had happened today, and his mind wasn't about to begin to process any of it. Tavros sunk into the couch and let his eyes slide shut.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter five**

Karkat stood on the edge of Gamzee's pool, hands on his hips, glaring down at his obnoxious excuse for an only friend, "Are you shitting me."

"Sorry bro." Gamzee smiled sheepishly, looking up at him with big golden eyes.

"How did you even…you know what? I don't care." Karkat threw his hands up and went to get the latter he now kept in the room. "Those rafters are almost twenty feet in the air. Twenty god damn feet!"

Gamzee swam on his back, looking up as Karkat scaled the latter, "Careful bro…"

"Fuck careful." Karkat grumbled as the latter swayed, reaching out for the ball that had been wedged in between two rafters. For a second his body hovered over open space, and then he swatted the ball down and it fell towards Gamzee.

With a yelp the merman quickly dove out of the way, letting the ball slap the water where his head had just been.

Karkat descended, still muttering to himself, and put the latter away with an indignant sniff, "Look, I gotta go clean a fucking walrus tank, so listen up. I'm gonna clean your tank tonight, got it? So be ready to sit your ass on that platform."

"Okay." Gamzee grinned, circling around and swimming alongside Karkat as he walked, "Can Tavros come?"

"What?" Karkat stumbled slightly, "What did you say?"

"Tavros. Can he come? A brother gets all kinds of lonely and I don't like making you do all that shit by yourself…"

Karkat was silent for a while, a muscle jumping in his jaw, before he said slowly, "How long as Tavros been visiting you?"

"I dunno, a while?"

"Days?"

"Nah, longer."

"…weeks?"

"I'd say more like months, why?"

"I'll be back tonight." Karkat said coldly, turning away and walking out of there, leaving Gamzee to wonder if he'd said something wrong.

"Nitram!"

"Mnff?" Tavros looked up the Lemon shark tank, releasing the pregnant female from his hands as a watery image of a ferocious scowl came into focus.

"Nitram you surface right now or so help me god I'll dump a bucket full of fish guts on top of you."

Yeah that was Karkat. Tavros swam to the top of the tank and spat his mouth piece out, "Hi Karkat, what's wrong?"

"Don't fucking ask like you don't know. Get out and put some clothes on; we gotta talk."

Tavros played with his fingers as he sat on the couch in the staff room, watching Karkat pace around in front of him. He had an idea what this was about—why else would Karkat be acting like this? Or speaking to him at all for that matter. Finally, after it looked like Karkat was going to wear a path in the floor, he finally spoke.

"Listen fuck ass, how long have you been going in there?"

"What?"

"Don't play smart ass with me!" Karkat snapped, rounding on Tavros with a look that made the vet recoil back. What had he done that was so wrong?

"I-I dunno, a few months? Are we talking about Gamz—"

"Shut up!"

Tavros snapped his mouth closed, alarmed.

Karkat took a breath, pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. You could easily see him counting to ten in his mind, before he took a breath and said in a more controlled tone, "Listen to me Nitram, and listen fucking good." He waited until Tavros nodded before continuing, "Gamzee is not like some cool little fish friend you just happened to find in some magical closet. He's a person. He has feelings and can get hurt. Do you know what those…those…" Karkat's voice shook with barely concealed anger, "those _fishermen_ did to him? You've seen the scars. He's different, and if people knew about him he'd be locked away in some lab. He'd be experimented on. He'd be killed, do you understand me? This may be some fucking hilarious game for you, but he's my friend and won't let you fucking do that!"

"Karkat, no it's not like that at all," Tavros protested, holding his hands up, "Look, I…I didn't know about all of that. But I know Gamzee's a person. We're friends too. He's…he's funny and likes to ask a lot of questions and he's a really nice, uh, whatever he is."

"He's a secret." Karkat said quietly, "Feferi found him and brought him here. She charged me to take care of him. Nobody knows about him except her and me. And now you. I fucking knew we should've done a better job hiding him." Karkat trudged to the couch and sunk into the cushions, head in his hands. "I fucking said so. I fucking said he couldn't stay here. And look what happened…"

"Nothing happened!" Tavros was hesitant to move closer to Karkat, "And nothing will. I promise I won't speak a word of this to anyone. I haven't either. I know that Gamzee is…different. I didn't really think that people would…experiment on him or something…" He swallowed the taste of the bitter word, "Karkat, you've got to believe me. I wouldn't do anything to hurt Gamzee."

Karkat looked up from his hands, his eyes hard, "I don't think it would be intentional. Nitram, you seem like a pretty nice motherfucker," the word made Tavros smile fleetingly, "but that's just it. You're too nice. Feferi can easily get people off her back and fuck knows I can too. But you? You're a loose end."

Gamzee rolled over and swam the length of his pool for the umpteenth time. Tavros was late. He usually got here around four or so, which was three hours ago. The aquarium closed around eight, so maybe he'd drop by in another hour? He did have work and all. Feeding those toothy motherfuckers must be some hard work.

A blissful grin unfurled across Gamzee's lips as he thought again about his adventure last night. It had been a sensory overload, and he hadn't gotten any sleep last night, preferring to lay back and run through it all in his mind. Those sharks that Tavros took care of were pretty fucking tough looking. It made Gamzee a little concerned that Tavros hopped right in there and fed them, but his bro assured him that is was only with the nicer ones and he knew what he was going.

Still, that was a lot more teeth than a motherfucker really needed.

Jellyfish thought. Man those things were the shit. All blobby and floating and getting their chill on. Looking all cool as shit, some of those fuckers even glowing—though Tavbro said that was just the lighting of the tank. But man, all of them were see-through! Gamzee couldn't get over that. Little floating blobs with tentacles and see-through bodies. Fucking weird shit man. He wished they weren't such testy little shits so he could pick one up or something.

Gamzee bent over backwards and swam down, his tail propelling him to the bottom of his pool. It was a pretty standard, smooth sided pool, though Karkat had put in some fake coral shit for him which was fun to play with sometimes. Maybe he could have a fish or two here with him, one of those bright tropical fuckers with all the colors. He'd like a fish. Someone to chill with, even though it wouldn't talk much. Just a friend. Like Tavros. Which got back to the question; where was he?

Sitting down on the edge of one of the coral pieces, Gamzee ran his fingers down his tail, remembering how gently Tavros had touched it. He'd looked so enchanted over something so boring, but then again Gamzee probably figured he'd looked the same way when playing with Tavros' toes. But like his bro said; tails were kinda cool after all.

The clang of a door opening and shutting brought Gamzee out of his mood, and he excitedly flicked his tail, swimming closer to the surface.

"Fuckass, get out we need to clean your tank."

Karkat.

Never before had Gamzee been disappointed to hear his best friend's voice, and it made him extremely confused as well as upset. He sighed in a cloud of bubbles and slowly rose to the water line, pushing his hair from his eyes.

"Hi Gamzee."

Gamzee did a double take at the two people standing by the side of his pool. A familiar scowl and a warm smile. Gamzee felt his face light up and with a splash he dove back under the water, shooting forwards so fast the water felt like a silky caress as he passed through it.

Tavros giggled as Gamzee shot out of the water, spraying both of them which earned a curse from Karkat, "Hey, didn't think I'd not come, did you?"

"Nah bro, just didn't know when." Gamzee's tail whisked back and forth, unable to keep still, "Karkat!"

"Yeah yeah hi fuckass." Karkat grumbled, though Gamzee could see the gentle amusement in his eyes, "Now get your fishy ass over to the god damn platform so we can drain this shit hole!"

Gamzee grinned and flipped over, looping around the bottom of the pool to get rid of some energy before swimming up to the platform and using his arms to drag himself into shallow water. The process of cleaning was an all night job, mostly thanks to draining and refilling the pool, and Karkat instantly got to work on that.

The water made a disgruntled gurgle and slowly the water level began to drop. It took almost two hours for the damn thing to drain, so the three of them sat on the platform and watched the water pull away from Gamzee's body and fall into the sinking pool.

"One of my Lemon sharks is pregnant." Tavros said, crossing his legs and facing Gamzee and Karkat, who was on the other side of the merman.

"She's gonna have babies?" Gamzee grinned excitedly, "Little Lemon sharks?"

"You should call one of them wedge. You know, Lemon Wedge?" Karkat commented, earning a look of disbelief from Tavros. A Karkat with a sense of humor? Gamzee looked equally as confused; though that might've been because he didn't know what a lemon was.

"Yeah, that leaves 19 other babies to name." Tavros chuckled.

"Holy shit, she's gonna have 20 babies?" Gamzee looked a little alarmed by this thought.

"Well, maybe. She can have from about 5-20 babies." Tavros explained, "She'll most likely have a litter in the lower teens, but before then she'll need an isolated tank. Just to keep her comfy. After that we'll move her back with her friends. Lemon sharks are social creatures."

"I wonder if I could have one of the babies." Gamzee mused.

"Oh god no." Karkat interrupted, "It's hard enough taking care of you! I don't want a fucking shark in here too!"

Gamzee laughed and his tail twitched over the wet concrete, "Just a little one."

"It's gonna get bigger than you, dumb shit." Karkat rolled his eyes, and then gaped, "_What the actual fuck, is that your ball!?_"

Gamzee scooted a little closer to Tavros, "Uh, maybe?"

Tavros looked up and blinked. "Woah. How'd you get it up there?"

"Accident?" Gamzee replied weakly, shying away from Karkat infuriated look.

Tavros watched the next ten minutes of Karkat's well practiced latter scaling and freeing of said ball with no amount of inconsiderable awe. "But Gamzee…how'd you even get it over there? It's not near your pool."

Gamzee shrugged quietly, watching as Karkat climbed back down with the rubber ball in his grasp.

The janitor trudged over and tossed the ball at Gamzee with a weary sort of irritation before sitting back down next to his friend. "I fucking swear I'm gonna get these rafters removed if that happens one more time."

Gamzee smiled behind the ball and rolled it from hand to hand, watching as the water finally sank away with a rather sludgy sounding gurgle.

The other two got up and went to work, chatting with Gamzee who watched with obvious interest. They grabbed a bunch of buckets, mops, sponges, and set to work. It wasn't too bad, since Gamzee wasn't exactly messy nor were there any outside sources of dirt. But scum had a way of finding itself everywhere, so Tavros handled giving the coral a once over while Karkat swept the bottom and sides of the pool. It was a lot of work, but having someone to help made it a lot easier on Karkat, and he was in a slightly better mood than usual.

Tavros was cleaning one of the fake coral structures when something caught his eye. A single, beautiful purple scale was lying in one of the cracks of the coral. Tavros gentle plucked it out and studied it. It was the size of a thumb nail and had a lovely silvery sheen over the royal purple. It was one of the back scales on Gamzee's tail. Tavros pocketed it without thinking and continued cleaning, keeping an eye out for any others.

The scale got him thinking of Gamzee, and he glanced up at his friend, smiling when he caught his eye. He couldn't help but think of the other night, taking Gamzee around the eerily empty aquarium, the watery blue halls silent save for his gentle step and Gamzee's hushed questions. The look of wonderment on his friend's face was something Tavros savored. He couldn't imagine being locked up in a pool for his entire life, especially after living in something as big as the ocean before. Though Gamzee had said he didn't remember anything before the capture. Tavros chewed on his bottom lip, his mind replaying the final events of that night. The kiss…it had been innocent enough, he supposed, but now that he thought about it Tavros wondered what Gamzee knew about things like that. He most likely heard about it from Karkat, but did he know what it meant? Or was it just his way of saying thank you? He'd never seen Gamzee kiss Karkat…but then again Karkat never took him out of here.

"Hey fuckass!"

Tavros jumped, turning around to see the two of them staring at him from the platform, the latter they'd used to climb down resting against the side, "Yeah?"

"Get the fuck out, I'm gonna fill the pool." Karkat said, beckoning him over impatiently.

Tavros weaved his way around fake coral and scaled the latter, climbing up on the platform and walking up the ramp that would lead to the water, sitting next to Gamzee.

"Hey Tav, thanks for helping my bro." Gamzee grinned toothily at him, still holding the ball.

"Sure thing." Tavros smiled and stretched, yawning widely. There was a hissing gurgle noise and then water suddenly gushed out, sloshing over the now clean pool bottom and slowly beginning to rise.

"Right, well it'll shut off automatically once it's full. I'm gonna head home, got some shit to do. Bye fuckasses." Karkat raised a hand and then headed out, closing the door behind him and leaving them alone.

Gamzee tossed the ball into the pool and leaned back on his hands, grinning at his friend, "So talk to me, Tavbro, whatcha been all up and doing?"

"Working, mostly." Tavros shrugged and crossed his legs, "And thinking a bit."

"About?"

"You. Well, more specifically your living arrangement."

"What about it?"

"I don't know," Tavros shrugged, "I guess I was just thinking about what I'd be like living here, growing up here, and…I don't know, just thinking about it."

Gamzee cocked his head, "What are you getting at my brother? Something's fucking with your mind, I can tell."

"It's just not fair." Tavros' lips twisted in a sour smile, "You don't belong here. You belong in the ocean, with other mermen or whatever. Not here, locked away."

Gamzee studied the set on Tavros' shoulders and the frustrated expression, as though he thought he could do something about it. "Same goes for all these miraculous water beasts, my brother, nobody likes being in a cage."

"It's different," Tavros shook his head, "they don't feel like you do."

"They feel fear." Gamzee replied, looking up at the rafters, "And pain. And some of those fuckers feel attachment. You told me about this shit last night, remember? How seahorses mate for life and otters hold hands while they sleep so they don't drift away. You think they all up and like being in a cage?" Gamzee shook his head, "Nah brother, nobody likes it. But the way I see it us fish folk have got three options. One; live all up and free in the ocean. Two; live in a cage. Or three; get eaten. Out of all of those fuckers, I don't think I got caught with the worst option."

Tavros looked at his hands, fingers knotted in his lap, and sighed, "But you're different, Gamzee. You're more…"

"Like people?" Gamzee shook his head, "Is that what all up and matters? Appearances? So if your Lemon sharks had hair and those weird finger things on the ends of your feet you'd feel bad for them too?"

"No, I mean you can speak for yourself." Tavros tried to explain, his hands trying to shape what he meant, "Sharks and jellyfish can't talk. They need people to talk for them, to say that they can feel pain and fear. But you can talk for yourself, you ask questions and learn and are smart. You shouldn't be here."

They were quiet for a while, watching the water slowly fill up the pool in front of them, lapping over the fake coral and creating twisted ripples that grew and changed until they struck the sides and died.

"If I wasn't here I wouldn't have met Karkat." Gamzee finally said, his voice quiet, "Or you. I don't question what life throws at a humble little motherfucker like myself, but I'm glad I met you two. And when I have company it's not so bad."

Tavros turned, his eyes sad, "But look what you gave up for it." His eyes lingered on the three thin scars cutting diagonally across his friend's face.

He shrugged and looked at Tavros, "It is what it is, my brother. Now stop looking so sad, it's making my scales itch."

Tavros smiled and dropped it for the time being, "I've actually been meaning to ask you something, if you don't mind?"

"Shoot the wicked shit at me my brother." Gamzee replied, grinning.

"Are there more of you? Like do you have a family?"

Gamzee blinked and cocked his head, "I don't have a motherfucking clue. I don't really remember much shit from when I was a wiggler."

"A what?"

"Wiggler. That's what Karkat called me, I think 'cause I swam like a spaz."

Tavros laughed, able to imagine it too easily; little Gamzee flailing around in a giant pool full of water, too excited to pick a direction to swim in. "I can picture that." He looked over at Gamzee and grinned, "Hey, your hair…"

"What about it?"

"It's…fluffy." Tavros blinked, looking startled. Since Gamzee was constantly swimming his hair was usually almost shoulder length, sort of wavy and dark as pitch. But now it was a mass of insanity perched on someone's head and labeled 'hair'. It was almost wavy, not quite curly, and seemed to behave like how little Gamzee used to swim; unable to pick a direction. So it covered all bases; ending up looking quite eccentric. How had he not noticed on their walk last night?

Gamzee reached up and ruffled it, "It does its own shit." He personally liked Tavros' hair a lot better. With his shaved sides and floppy Mohawk, he looked motherfucking adorable.

Tavros' eyes once again returned to his friend's scars, lingering slightly on where they ended on his jaw line. Without thinking, he slowly reached out, meaning to cup the side of Gamzee's face and brush his thumb along the torn flesh.

It took a second for Gamzee to realize what Tavros was doing, and as his hand approached his face, specifically his scars, the merman flinched involuntarily.

Tavros froze, arm outstretched, "I…sorry." He quickly moved to retract his hand, feeling like he'd just swallowed an eel. Had he really just tried to touch Gamzee's scars? What the hell was he thinking?

Gamzee caught his wrist, stopping the movement, "No, it's okay. It's just…" he trailed off, unable to finish the sentence. He kept his hand lightly on Tavros' wrist as his friend slowly moved closer, making sure not to flinch this time. It was Tavros. Tavros wouldn't hurt him.

Gently, like handling a spooked animal, Tavros rested his hand on the side of Gamzee's face, keeping his movements slow and predictable. He rubbed his thumb softly along his friend's cheekbone, and then down to the first of the three scars. He let the pad of his thumb run over the slightly shiny strip of skin, noticing how Gamzee held perfectly still. "It's okay," Tavros said softly, "I won't do anything you don't want me to."

Slowly, Gamzee released the breath he'd been holding, pushing aside the weird prickling over his skin as Tavros stroked the tips of his scars. He'd never let anyone touch them. He'd fought tooth and nail against Karkat when he'd first come here, even though his friend had been trying to help heal him. Karkat ended up having to sedate him and clean him up that way. But now here was this person, running his fingers over his scars and looking at him with such a tender, careful expression it made Gamzee want to reassure him that it was fine. And it was, he realized with a jolt. It was completely fine. Nice, even. When had that changed?

Tavros felt very conscious of the emptiness of the room and then soothing sound of water sloshing as it filled the pool. He felt Gamzee's hand on his wrist, the light brushing of his cool skin against Tavros' surprisingly warm body. The different texture of the scar tissue under his thumb and how soft Gamzee's cheek was, all of this flew through Tavros' mind as he moved a little closer, not aware of what he was doing until Gamzee met him half way.

The soft pressure of Tavros' lips against his own made a small shiver travel up Gamzee's spine and he let his eyes slide shut. Tavros' hand held his face, warm and calloused against his skin, and Gamzee's other hand moved to his friend's waist, resting on the gentle curve of his hips. He felt Tavros murmur against his lips and he pulled him closer.

Tavros complied, sliding his body so his hip was against where Gamzee's torso smoothed out into scales, wrapping an arm around the merman's waist and holding him close as he kissed him. He felt Gamzee's hand leave his wrist in favor of tangling in his hair, the sharp nails scratching against the base of his skull and making him gasp.

Gamzee took his opportunity to deepen the kiss, his teeth nibbling on Tavros' plump lower lip.

"Ah," Tavros jerked back, looking surprised. A bead of blood bloomed on his lower lip where Gamzee's unusually sharp teeth had been, tasting metallic as Tavros swiped it away with his tongue.

"Shit, I'm sorry." Gamzee said, releasing Tavros' hair and running a finger over his split lip.

"It's okay, doesn't hurt at all." Tavros said, and then seeing Gamzee's look added, "I work with sharks, Gamzee, believe me—this is nothing." He smiled and was rewarded by one from Gamzee, the kind that pulled one corner of his mouth up crookedly and made Tavros feel like he had eels in his stomach again.

Suddenly a cool wetness seeped over Tavros' legs and butt, making him yelp in surprise and jump up. The pool had filled itself completely and the water ceased rising, lapping gently over Gamzee's body. "Want to swim with me?" The merman asked, eagerly moving back into the water with a happy sigh.

Tavros looked down at his wet shorts, "Well I'm already wet, might as well." He pulled off his shirt and shorts, kicked off his sandals, and followed Gamzee into the water. It was cold, and Tavros felt his skin prickle as he slid in, submerging his head and opening his eyes underwater. It was sort of blurry, but Tavros could easily see in the cool, clean pool water. He wished he'd brought his air tank; spending hours underwater in that tranquil silence was something he loved.

Gamzee sunk underwater, swimming down below Tavros and then looking up at him, grinning.

Tavros smiled and waved, and broke the surface for air. He felt a rush of water around his body and then Gamzee was there too, his hair once again sleek and wet—though a few stubborn strands continued to stick out at odd angles.

"Hold your breath bro, I wanna show you something." Gamzee said, waiting until Tavros took a deep breath before wrapping his arms around him and pulling him down. He held Tavros to his chest, arms looped around his friend's torso as his powerful tail propelled them to the bottom of the pool. Gamzee handled Tavros easily, careful not to let him hit any of the coral, and then sat down on one of the fake rocks. Keeping Tavros securely in his arms, he pointed silently at his underwater world.

Despite the fact it was fake, Karkat had obviously gone to great lengths to find fake coral that at least looked real enough. It was like looking over a vast land of rocks that at first seemed just brown. But as Tavros looked, he saw greens and pinks and yellows emerge. Fake seaweed flowed lethargically in the current made by Gamzee's tail, and small fake sea anemones swung their feelers in a mock threat. Sand dollars were stuck to the sides of the coral in some places, and all of it was bathed in the silent watery world.

Tavros became aware of his lack of air, his chest beginning to ache and his lungs burn. He tapped Gamzee's arms and pointed at the surface.

Gamzee shook his head and brought his face back to Tavros', pressing his lips firmly against the startled human's. He used his tongue to make Tavros part his lips, and then blew a breath of air into his friend's body, pulling away and grinning.

Tavros blinked, the ache subsiding into a pleasant burn as oxygen was delivered to his lungs. What was that? It tasted a little fishy… His confusion must've shown on his face because Gamzee laughed; the sound was silent underwater and bubbles flowed from his mouth like little minnows, desperately swimming to the surface.

They stayed down there for a bit longer, Gamzee giving him another breath of air when Tavros needed it, and then they surfaced, Gamzee holding Tavros in his arms again.

With a small gasp Tavros broke the water line, sucking in air and looking behind him at Gamzee, "How'd you do that?"

"What? The air thing? It's easy bro." He leaned backwards, floating easily, his tail gentle cutting through the water and pushing him along. Tavros, still in his arms, was towed along with him.

"So you can breathe underwater?" Tavros asked, looking automatically at Gamzee's neck for gills.

"Nah, not quite. I just sort of release all the air in my lungs and then I can chill out under there for a long ass time. Not really sure how it works. But I took some air this time so you'd be all up and fine down there."

"Sort of like a seal." Tavros commented, leaning back on Gamzee's chest, his head under his friend's chin. He could feel Gamzee's body pressing against his, their bare skin almost suctioned together from the water. Tavros felt the fluid movement of his friend's hidden muscle as he swam, the way it coiled and stretched and contracted as Gamzee held him and swam backwards, tail moving them through the water. His arms were securely locked around his chest and stomach, and Tavros' eyes fell on the distinct white markings on the darker side of Gamzee's arms. They looked nice, like thin white cuffs, and Tavros traced them up his friend's arm with his pointer finger.

They drifted along together; Tavros in Gamzee's arms, letting Gamzee's tail propel them gently from one side of the pool to the other, filling the empty room with the gentle sounds of moving water.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

"Yes sir, the emperor penguins shell be sent shortly, thank you for your business." Eridan hung up the phone, "Glubbing moron…" He slicked his hair back from his forehead and leaned back in his chair, nose turned up in dissatisfaction at the computer screen in front of him. He reached for his phone, the gold rings on his fingers winking in the light as he pressed a button and held the phone to his ear, "Fef? It's me. Yes I know your office is right next to me, cod I'm not stupid."

Eridan listened to her speak, rubbing the bridge of his nose, "Yes the penguins are fine—of course I have their best interests in mind! Alright I'll check on them clam down—aha yes, thank you." He hung up and rubbed his hands together, admiring the sheen on his filed nails. Desk hands, free from calluses, not meant for handling fish. Eridan Ampora was a sea man; he loved the smell of salt water and the sharp ocean wind. But he didn't love the reek of fish guts or the slimy look of scales. Nor did he love the pitching waves that slammed against a boat's hull, or the grueling labor of a sailor.

Standing and brushing off his elegant purple coat, Eridan strode off to go check on the penguins—which were bloody _fine_ by the wave! Fish puns…they always brought a grin to his face. It'd started off innocent enough; he and his school friend Feferi making fish jokes and getting people to groan in exasperation. Somehow that had ended up with duel-ownership of the best aquarium and fishy phone calls—though most people assumed Feferi was the head honcho. Not true!

Boots snapping against the floor, Eridan stalked by the Tiger shark tank and then did a double take, "What are you doing?"

A young man clad in a wet suit looked up in confusion, and then did a double take, "Oh, hello Mr. Ampora. I was just pausing on my way to the Lemon shark tank to make sure everything was fine here."

Who the hell was this—oh wait. Wasn't it that doctor fellow? What was his name…cod dammit. Oh well. "Lemon sharks, uh huh."

"One of the females is pregnant." He said, smiling eagerly.

"Congratulations." Eridan replied dryly, "You'll make a wonderful father." He left the doctor standing there with an utter look of shock on his face, amused with himself. The penguins, as he'd said, were perfectly glubbing fine. Noisy as a cod damn seagull in his father's fishing net, but otherwise fine. Eridan, not wanting to run into that doctor fellow again, took a back loop towards the employee area. It was a clever little plan, until he realized he hadn't been back here in ages and was completely lost.

"Cod damn Fef and her bloody labyrinth." He grumbled upon entering his third supply closet. He backed out and walked back the way he came, looking around for anyone who might have a clue as to how to get back to the main building. Spotting an open door, Eridan marched forwards and pushed it open.

Cod dammit! Another bloody dead end—no wait, there was another door. Past the filing cabinets and worn looking couch was a second door, closed, but that was not a problem.

Producing a master key, Eridan strode over and tried the door; nothing. He reeled back a bit, surprised, and tried again. And again; nothing.

"What the…?"

"Mr. Ampora!"

The voice made Eridan jump and the key clattered to the ground, "Holy mackerel don't sneak up on me like that!" He looked over to find the doctor standing there, eyes huge and looking just as shocked to see him.

"I'm sorry, but what are you doing here? This is a work room—is there something I can help you with?"

The man's voice was tense, and Eridan couldn't help but wonder if he'd maybe toed the line with his joke earlier on. "No, no I was just looking around." He bent down to pick up his key and paused when something caught his eye. On the floor, hidden from the doctor's view by the couch, was what looked like to be a guitar pick. Eridan swiped it as he grabbed the key, pocketing both smoothly, "I'll be on my wave then." He nodded at the doctor and slipped out, striding down the hallway purposefully.

It took another ten minutes before Eridan reemerged around the Tiger shark tank, and he gratefully headed back to his office, meaning to have a conversion with Fef about the layout of that place. Sadly, she was busy and he took his seat outside her office, deciding to pass the time with that little guitar pick he found.

Pulling it out of his pocket, Eridan frowned and held it up, turning it over in his hands. It was far too slim to be a guitar pick, and the wrong size and shape. It gleamed strangely in the light, sort of like mother of pearl, but dark purple. It was pretty, and matched the streak in his hair, so Eridan resolved to figure out what it was and then make it into a necklace or something. It almost looked like a scale, but what the hell sort of fish had a purple scale the size of his thumb nail?

"Eridan?"

His hand closed over the scale and it disappeared into his coat, "Fef! I need to sea you about a map…"

Tavros waited until Eridan's footsteps had faded before hastily shutting the door and locking it swiftly. "Oh fuck…" He leaned against the door, heart pounding, staring at the closed room across from him. That had been too close. He'd just come back from checking out the Lemon shark to find Eridan jiggling the door knob like it held a month's worth supply of tuna behind it.

Swallowing tightly, Tavros set his bag down and began to work off his wet suit. Karkat had spoken about this after he'd found out that Tavros knew. Over the past few weeks Karkat had begun talking to him beyond 'move fuckass' or 'what the motherfucking kind of mess is this? Did you go out of your way to smear fish chum up the god damn walls? You're as bad as he is!' to more specific topics like 'move fuckass or I'll shove my mop so far up your ass children will use you for a maypole' and Gamzee. They talked about Gamzee in rare moments, and always referred to him as Karkat's 'friend from college'. Tavros learned a lot from Karkat about Gamzee; his feeding schedule, how to clean his scales, how to force him to sit the fuck still so he could give him his shots, and other more personal things.

"He likes color." Karkat once said, leaning against the penguin tank as Tavros tried to fend off hordes of flightless birds, all determined to find that fish Karkat had planted on him while his back had been turned. "I try and bring him bright things once and while. You know, balls, balloons, I got him a rubber duck once too."

And then the more serious things.

"He's alone." Karkat tugged moodily at the cuff of his one piece uniform, "The only company he's got is you and me. And we're not enough, you know? Two people? That's not enough…but the way that fucker acts it's like we're his whole world."

"We are." Tavros said quietly, "We're all he knows. But I don't think he sees it like that. Gamzee isn't one to look at the glass half empty."

"Yeah, because that fucker's already knocked it up into the rafters." Karkat growled.

They visited him separately usually, but on Friday nights they came together and stayed late, and Gamzee was always a bundle of energy when that happened. Karkat usually had to shout at him to stop splashing around like a one finned clownfish before the merman would settle down.

Over the weeks, Tavros and Gamzee had grown rather close. They spent time swimming together and sometimes staying underwater for over an hour—something that had taken Tavros a little time to adapt to.

Now as Tavros pulled on a dry shirt and headed for the door, he couldn't help but think about how close that had been. He pulled out the key Karkat had given him—much easier than picking the lock every time—and entered the room, shutting the door firmly behind him.

"Tav!" Gamzee's grin was infectious as Tavros approached the pool, "C'mere, I got something exciting to tell you!"

"What? Did Karkat dye your water purple again?"

"Nah bro, but that was awesome." Gamzee had enjoyed it so much that he'd made Karkat promise to do it again next weekend, and Karkat had surprised both of them by agreeing.

Tavros knelt down to where Gamzee's eager face looked up at him, droplets of water dangling on his eyelashes. He looked beautiful, and Tavros was too busy staring to notice the sly grin unfurling on his friend's face. If he'd noticed the smile he might've backed away rather rapidly.

Arms came up, water streaming down them, and Gamzee wrapped them around Tavros' shoulders, bringing him closer. Tavros felt his heart skip a beat and he moved to meet him, eyes closing expectantly, only to shriek as Gamzee yanked him into the water.

Tavros emerged coughing and sputtering, "Gamzee!"

Gamzee swam away from Tavros' flailing, laughing, "Aw man I can't believe you fell for that!" He chuckled, and then yelped as Tavros lunged for him.

"You're gonna pay for that!" Tavros latched onto him, fingers running up and down his friend's sides and under his arms.

"Ahaha oh god T-Ta-aahaha!" Gamzee thrashed around, trying to fend off Tavros and failing miserably. The little motherfucker had locked his legs around his tail, effectively keeping him in place for more tickle torture.

"I'm in my clothes god dammit!" Tavros dodged a flailing blow and tickled his friend until tears ran down his face and he was shrieking for mercy. Only then did he let off, hiking his legs up around Gamzee's waist and looping his arms around his neck. "Bastard…"

"Haaah, that was cruel…" Gamzee wheezed, poking Tavros in the ribs before swimming out towards the center of the pool.

"Cruel? You got my dry clothes all wet!" Tavros protested, piggy back riding now as Gamzee swam further out.

"Well, get rid of that shit and let it all up and dry out." Gamzee said, swimming over to the platform, "Just drop it off or some shit."

Tavros blushed a bit, still not quite used to Gamzee's nonchalant attitude when it came to the removal of clothes. But he complied, stripping in the water and tossing the soaking garments on the platform the dry.

"What the hell are those?"

Tavros blinked and looked down at what Gamzee was gaping at. "Oh. Uh, those are nipples." And this was exactly why disrobing in front of Gamzee was a bad idea. Sadly he hadn't been paying attention again, and suddenly a shock went through him as Gamzee ran his fingers over one of them, "Ah, hey!" He jerked away, trying to cross his arms over his chest and tread water at the same time.

Gamzee blinked, "Did I hurt you?"

"Um, no." Tavros moved back a little bit more, "It's just that…they're sensitive and you can't just like…touch them like that."

"Oh. _Oh._" Gamzee had the grace to at least look a little embarrassed. "Sorry bro."

"It's fine." Tavros let Gamzee come close again, eyeing his little smile with a suspicion those other two grins should have gotten.

"No tricks bro." Gamzee smiled and drew Tavros closer, pressing his lips against his friend's in a sweet kiss. He felt Tavros' arms slide around his neck, pulling him closer, his tail moving automatically between his legs, back and forth, to keep them afloat.

Tavros tilted his head to the side and parted his lips, sliding his tongue along the seam of Gamzee's lips. He felt him gasp and took the opportunity to slip his tongue inside, careful of his sharp teeth. Gamzee made a small noise and his tongue eagerly joined Tavros', the kiss deepening and fingers tangling in hair.

"Mnh…" Tavros pressed his body up against Gamzee's, one of his hands sliding down to the merman's lower back, bringing him up against him. He wasn't aware of them moving until his back hit the side of the pool and Gamzee was up against him, not an inch of space between them as he ravished his mouth.

Gamzee's hand slid down Tavros' side and rested on the hem of his boxers, tracing the line of his hip bone with the tip of his nail, mindful of its sharpness against Tavros' fragile human skin. He felt him shiver and Gamzee grinned into the kiss just as Tavros broke away with a small gasp of air.

They smiled at each other, as if they shared a special little secret, and then Tavros moved in for another kiss.

"I'm shore it's a scale father, I'm not stupid." Eridan snapped, fingering the purple item he'd been studying for the past few hours.

"_I don't care if it's a scale; I care if it's a certain type of scale. What does it look like?_"

"It's about the size of my thumb nail, shiny, and looks like a guitar pick. Oh, and it's purple."

A silence came from over the phone, until the gruff voice of Mr. Ampora spoke again, his tone soft, "_Did you say purple?_"

"Yes father, it's as purple as sea urchin." Eridan replied, turning the thing over and over, letting it flash and dance between his fingers.

"_Listen to me boy, and listen whale. You are to go back to where you found that scale and look around for anyfin different. Understand? Covered tanks, off limit areas, and locked doors._"

"Yes sir." Eridan said, "But what am I looking for—" but his father had already hung up. With a sigh, Eridan set down the phone and stood up, pocketing the scale. Well, best get to it. His father hated to be kept waiting.

The only problem was he didn't quite remember how he'd gotten to that little storage room in the first place—he'd been lost that one time.

Eridan sighed and tucked a stray strand of hair behind his ear. There was just no helping it. In order to find places you were half certain didn't exist, you had to get lost first.

Fortunately, getting lost was one of Eridan's talents.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

A hand set down a slick, silver cell phone and then rested on the desk. Anyone who would look at this hand would notice right away the condition of it. Nails; filed down and rounded out to the point of perfection. Skin; well oiled, and fingers adorned with heavy rings. Underneath the hand, however, lay the story of this man. Scarred palms and calloused fingers were worn with a severe pride, a tribute to the hard days at sea when it was man vs. ocean.

The owner of the hand was deep in thought, his dark eyes resting unseeingly on a massive tank on the opposite side of his office. It took up the entire wall and, thought it did not protrude, was about the size of a comfortable bedroom. Coral and marine vegetation adorned the tank, bright colors making the simmering water looking warm and inviting. But it was the creature there that was the real prize.

He'd pulled out three, that fateful day on his mighty ship, the _Dualscar_. One, the biggest, had been injured, making it no use to him alive, so he he'd forced to kill the beast. He'd had it stuffed and mounted in his living room. The smallest one had attacked his eldest son after he'd killed its father (he presumed it was its father) and had been unfortunately injured. Sadly, he did not posses its body, for some tree hugging animal rights activists had snatched it from him before he could run off with it.

But he'd been lucky enough; there had been enough time to acquire one.

_Alive_.

It was the second biggest and obviously a skittish creature. It was larger than a human; about seven feet long, and looked magnificent swimming in his office. The markings on this beast were truly incredible, and he was certain there were no others in the world like it.

However, there had been an unfortunate…accident.

The thing had _misbehaved_ and so steps were taken to insure it would never disobey its master again. And anyway, those things didn't need tongues.

Mr. Ampora stood and walked to the tank, smiling as the creature flinched back from him and cowered behind a hunk of coral, glaring mutinously. "That's right, my precious. Soon I might have a friend to join you, if it's who I think it is. But I don't need two of you. And the one coming might be…'damaged goods'. Appearance means everything, after all. So don't you worry—you're not being replaced. I plan on selling the new one. I'm sure scientists will pay quite handsomely to see how you things tick."

Eridan, who was now thoroughly lost, opened yet another door and sighed, "How many cod damn storage closets do we need?! I'm shore we could get by with half as many!" He shut the door with an indignant huff and walked on, eyeing the next one with a weary look, "Let's sea what's behind door number four hundred and twenty! Oh my cod! Another storage closet! I wouldn't have guessed!" He moved to shut the door and then paused, frowning.

"Wait a second…" That couch…that was the couch that had the scale behind it! Eridan grinned and flung open the door again. And _there_ was the locked door behind it! "Somebody had me an award, I'm a genius." Eridan gloated, striding forwards and trying the door.

Locked, as he'd suspected.

But this time he'd come prepared!

Eridan withdrew the master key he'd swiped from Feferi's desk earlier on. Technically he was only borrowing it, and technically it was his as well.

Sliding it into the lock, Eridan turned the key and grinned at the click. Father would be so proud of him. Maybe father would take him out to sea next time, instead of his older brother. Eridan scowled, his face falling. Being the second son was the worst. Nothing he ever did was good enough to earn his father's approval. His older brother got to go on the voyages. His older brother got to come home with tales about how he and father braved the ocean's wrath.

But today was Eridan's turn.

With a determined expression, Eridan opened the door and walked inside.

"Oh my cod…" The whisper left his lips noiselessly as he stared at what he saw before him. It was that doctor guy—he recognized the Mohawk—but in a massive pool and…wearing nothing but underwear. However Eridan's eyes weren't fixated on that. They were currently fixated on the thing in the doctor's arms who was…oh my cod were they _kissing_?!

The jolt snapped Eridan out of his stupor and he stepped back into the shadows, gaping. Who was that person? Was his skin actually purple? How peculiar…

The purple person drew back and said something quietly to the doctor, which made him laugh. Then the purple person moved away and swam towards the center of the pool, his tail propelling him forward—wait. Tail?

Eridan took off his glasses and rubbed them furiously on his shirt before shoving them back up his nose. He then slowly reached into his pocket and took out the scale, holding it up.

It was undeniable.

This thing was a merman.

And this was its scale.

"Please Tav!"

"Gamzee, I'd love to but you know how dangerous it is!"

"But it went okay last time and I trust you completely with my body."

"Uh, thanks. But I don't want to push it. Maybe during a holiday as something special…"

"Please, Tavros?"

Tavros grimaced at the soft plea. Gamzee was staring up at him with big dark eyes, looking so god damn hopeful and longing and… "Augh FINE! But we are not going beyond the west wing this time."

"AW FUCK YES!" Gamzee crowed, pushing himself back from the wall and swimming around excitedly, "Aww yeeaah this fucker is getting his move on with Tavbro!" He swam to the center of the pool and dived down , propelling himself to the bottom and then shooting upwards. He shot out of the water, spraying droplets everywhere, and curled his tail around so his body flipped backwards elegantly before he crashed back into the pool.

"Yeah yeah I'll get the wheelchair." Tavros grumbled, hiding his grin as he went back into the storage room for the device. He hadn't bothered to bring it home since that night, seeing as he knew something like this would happen in the future. Unfolding it and making sure it was steady, Tavros wheeled it out to the ramp where he found Gamzee waiting, bouncing up and down and slapping his tail in the ankle-deep water. "Calm down for a minute, I need to get you in this thing."

"Sure thing, bro!" Gamzee said, settling down and grinning like a maniac.

Tavros knelt down and placed on hand under Gamzee's tail, under where his butt would be, and the other on his back. He waited until Gamzee had looped his arms around his neck before lifting him up with a grunt. Good thing about all the swimming and animal handling—it gave you some serious muscles. He deposited Gamzee gently in the chair and waited for him to get situated.

"Ready!" Gamzee said, his tail flicking around anxiously, "Can we see the penguins? And sharks? Can you tell me more about them? Do they eat people? Can we see the—"

"Woah woah calm down, Gamzee!" Tavros laughed, pushing him towards the storage room, "Don't worry we'll see all of it. And yes, sometimes they do eat people. But only stupid ones."

Gamzee chuckled and leaned forward eagerly, his eyes bright as they passed from his world in Tavros' world.

Tavros smiled and wheeled him out of there, turning and pushing Gamzee down to where the penguins where. They'd start there and work their way back.

As Tavros' footsteps faded, the hall was silent for a long while. Then, two sets of footsteps came from the opposite direction. One set was swift and nervous, treading lightly and quickly. The other was steady, solid, and held a great amount of command about it. Though the nervous person was leading the way, it was clear even from a distance who was in charge.

"In here, father." Eridan showed him the door and then hastily got out of the way.

Mr. Ampora strode past him, leaving the lingering smell of salt and cigars behind. He made his way to the other door, taking his time, though inside he was as anxious as his second born son. Was this it? Had he finally found the creature again, after all these years? He pushed open the door and stepped inside.

"Do we really have to go back?" Gamzee asked, glancing back longingly at the jellyfish.

"Yes, I don't want to push luck. We can do this again some other time, okay?"

"That janitor guy didn't see us, right?"

"No, but it scared the living daylights out of me." Tavros chuckled, pushing Gamzee into the storage room. "We can—do you hear that?"

Gamzee paused and cocked his head, listening intently for a few seconds before pointing at his home, "There. Somebody is in there. And they don't sound very happy."

Tavros felt something burn away his insides like acid at Gamzee's words, "Stay here," he said quietly, "and don't make a sound."

Gamzee nodded, wondering what was going on. He sat back in his chair and watched as Tavros cautiously made his way to the door. Something felt slightly off about this…something felt…wrong. Gamzee sniffed the air and felt something tickle the back of his mind; a memory, pushed down into the deepest waters of his mind. He frowned and sniffed again, then felt something hit him. Something primal and urgent; fear. "Tavros!" He whispered, just as his friend disappeared through the door.

Keeping close to the wall, Tavros peered out to see what was going on. He could hear them quite clearly now—probably thanks to the yelling.

"It was here! I promise, father! It was here and it was purple and had this…this…" Eridan waved his hands in the vague outline of a tail.

"And what?" A man responded, his back to Tavros, "It just got up and walked away?"

"No!" Eridan said desperately, "I don't know where it went! But it was here! I saw it! Look—here's the scale!" He thrust his hand out like a drowning man grabbing for a life raft. Pinched between his thumb and index finger was a shiny, dark purple scale.

Tavros' eyes widened at the sight of Gamzee's scale. He'd found one just like it, but when he'd gone home it had somehow fallen out of his pocket. And Eridan must have seen it and…oh no. Tavros had no idea who the other man was, but he was big and intimidating and seemed to scare Eridan pretty badly. Eridan had called him '_Father'. _So it was Eridan's, no doubt.

He backed up slowly, turning around and creeping back into the storage room. He caught sight of Gamzee and hurried over, "Gamzee, what's wrong?" His friend's pupils were narrow slits and he looked about ready to pounce on someone and rip their throat out. The look cleared slightly as Tavros spoke, and the merman shook himself.

"I…I don't know. Who's in there?" Gamzee asked, feeling jumpy.

"Eridan and his father, I think they came to get you." Tavros said softly, "Be very quiet, okay? I won't let them take you."

"Take me? Take me where?" Gamzee asked, twisting around in his seat as Tavros searched for something, "Tav, what's going on?"

Hearing the tone in Gamzee's voice, Tavros moved back over, "Shh, it's okay. I'm just going to take you back outside. It'll be fun, but you have to be extremely quiet. Here, put this over your tail and make sure nothing shows." He handed Gamzee a blanket and then went and rummaged through his own clothes bag. Thank god he always packed a sweatshirt in case it got cold. Pulling it out, he handed it to Gamzee and quickly explained how it worked, watching as his friend pulled it on and zipped it up. "Okay, perfect. Just don't move around a lot." He reached forwards and pulled the hood up over Gamzee's head, so all that could be seen were a pair of worried yellow eyes.

"Tav?"

"It's okay, but you have to be quiet now." Tavros soothed him, pushing Gamzee out of the storage room and, on impulse, closing and locking the door behind him. He didn't run, but he was damn near it. Instead he marched, tanks flying by as he sped walked towards the loading docks out back. As he went he fished out his cell phone and dialed a new number, praying he would answer.

After quite a few rings Tavros was about to hang up until, "_Why the FUCK are you calling me? I'm off duty! Not working! What part of 'nine-to-five' do you fuckasses not understand!? If that bubble brained moron has his ball stuck in the FUCKING RAFTERS again—_"

"Karkat shut up!" Tavros hissed, earning a shocked silence and a confused looked from Gamzee. "I need you to meet me by the loading docks _now_. It's an emergency. Your friend from college is with me."

"_Shit why didn't you say so? I'll be there in a minute_."

Tavros snapped his phone shut and tucked it into his pocket.

"Where are we?" Gamzee asked curiously as they hurried through a holding room, past large shipments of fresh fish, filters, nets, and other things needed to keep an aquarium up and running.

"At the back of the Aquarium. Hang on a second." Tavros stopped him by a door and wrenched it open, locking it in place and then wheeling Gamzee through and shutting the door behind him. He was in the middle of locking it when he heard a soft '_motherfuck…_' and looked around.

Gamzee was sitting limply in his chair, eyes and mouth open wide as he took in the outside world. A warm breeze danced by, caressing his half dried hair and whispering over his uncovered face. The night was clear, not a cloud in the sky, and Gamzee stared in rapture at the stars. His eyes moved over everything. The dumpsters, the street, the stairs, the ramp, the lamp, the truck parked a few yards away, everything. Nothing missed his hungry gaze, but he remained completely motionless for the duration of his vision feast, like something had gone out of him.

"Gamzee?" Tavros called softly, "Are you okay?"

"…m'fine…" Gamzee murmured distractedly, staring in wonder at the stars again. His eyes fell on the moon and he couldn't tear them away.

Tavros looked behind him, towards the closed door, and swallowed with difficulty. Those people were still there and Gamzee (along with himself, for that matter) were in a lot of danger. But they couldn't do anything until Karkat got there. So he took a breath and walked over, laying a hand on Gamzee's shoulder, "That's the moon. It's like a small sort-of planet that revolves around Earth. Those little sparkly dots up there are the stars, billions and billions of miles away. The bigger ones are other galaxies, I think, and they hold dozens of planets and moons and stars."

Tavros went on, relaying all he knew about the solar system as Gamzee sat quietly and listened. Once he'd used up all his knowledge, Tavros moved to the things around them. He pointed them out, gave them names, and was surprised to find out how much Gamzee already knew. It seemed, despite having lived in the same enclosed room all this life, Gamzee knew a fair amount about the outside world. What he couldn't seem to get over was the sensory overload.

Pictures were one thing. Smelling the crisp, clean evening air was a whole other story. Feeling the wind brush against your cheeks and hearing the sound of crickets chirping was something completely alien to the merman. And he merely sat there silently and soaked it all in.

A car appeared at the entrance of the loading area, and Tavros waved at it, breaking off on his explanation of how people had traveled to space. The car came to a screeching halt in front of them and Tavros pushed the wheelchair up to the vehicle.

Karkat jumped out and ran around, opening the back door, "Get him in." He said gruffly, looking around with narrowed eyes.

Gamzee allowed himself to be maneuvered lengthwise into the backseat, his back against the other door, his tail across the seats, and the blanket still covering his tail, in case somebody peeked in.

Tavros leapt into the passenger seat and Karkat sped off into the night.

Unnoticed by all of them, a man stepped out from the shadows and flicked a cigarette to the ground, crushing it under the toe of his boot. He flipped open a cell phone and dialed a number, holding it up to his ear, "Dad? Yeah. They have him. Yes I'm sure. Okay." He snapped the phone shut and grinned, "Swim, swim as fast as you can, but your little friends can't save you now."

He smiled and reached up, brushing his fingers over the jagged scars on his forehead left by that creature when it had attacked him; right before he'd taken his three-pronged spear and slashed the fucker across the face with it. Payback was a bitch—and this Ampora wasn't done by a long shot.

That thing would pay with its life, one way or another.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

It only took about ten minutes before both Gamzee and Karkat were peppering Tavros with questions ranging from 'what the motherfuck is that thing?' to 'you have two seconds to tell me what's going on before I fucking toss you out of the god damn car'.

And it was all starting to fray on Tavros' nerves.

"Look, I'll explain everything—that's a stoplight, Gamzee—when we're at your home, alright?" Tavros finally snapped, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration. He didn't know any more than they did and the stress of being caught was starting to get to him. He'd basically kidnapped a merman! And those men…Eridan and that other guy…Tavros leaned against the window and closed his eyes, suddenly exhausted. There was nothing in his job contract that said anything about stealing away in the dead of night with a mythical creature.

They'd decided on Karkat's house because it was closer and had a basement they could hide Gamzee in. It took twenty minutes to get there, though Karkat said it usually took him ten. But he didn't want to be pulled over and explain why he had a fucking fish man in the back of his car so he was stuck with the speed limit.

They pulled up to a small gray house with dark red shutters and a matching door. Tavros got out and set up the wheelchair while Karkat kept an eye out for nosy neighbors. Opening the back door, Tavros helped Gamzee into the chair, repositioned the blanket, and then hurried him inside with Karkat bringing up the rear.

Lights were turned on, revealing a comfortable looking living room with a fair sized television on the opposite wall. Karkat locked the door and flopped down on his couch, sighing and rubbing his face with his hands, "Alright fuckass, talk."

Tavros looked at Gamzee, who was craning his neck to stare at a snow globe, and echoed Karkat's sigh, "I don't know what happened or how they found out, but Eridan and some guy who might have been his father were in Gamzee's room."

"Shit, did they see him?" Karkat sat forward, his eyes trained on Tavros intently.

"No, but they were definitely looking for him."

"How did they not see a giant fish man swimming around in a tank?!"

"He, uh, wasn't in the tank." Tavros mumbled.

This got Gamzee's attention and he perked up, grinning, "I got to go see some motherfucking jelly floaters!"

"What."

"He means jelly—"

"_I know what he fucking means!_" Karkat snarled, silencing Tavros instantly, "Why the FUCK was he outside?"

"Hey bro, don't get all losing your cool at Tav," Gamzee said, "I made him take me."

"You can't make anyone do a god damn thing!" Karkat snapped, "You don't own a god damn wheelchair and it's not like the aquarium keeps a fucking supply for fish people who want a late night stroll!"

"It's a good thing we were out or they would have seen Gamzee!" Tavros retorted, only to be shot down by Karkat's murderous glare.

"By your reckoning it seems like those fuckers already knew he was there! Which means they must've seen him! Now, I know Ampora doesn't get off his ass for anything, much less to wander into some god damn storage room, so he must've found something or _seen_ something beforehand."

A sickening feeling opened up in Tavros' stomach.

"So, how many fucking times have you two gone out on your little date nights?"

"…twice."

"And did it every cross your disease riddled brain that SOMEBODY COULD HAVE SEEN HIM?"

"_Don't yell at Tavros_." Gamzee growled, and things went deadly silent.

After an electrified pause, Tavros spoke, "No, he's right Gamzee. It's my fault. Eridan had a scale, your scale, and I think it was the one I took from one of my visits."

"A scale?"

"Yeah…I found it and wanted to keep it but…when I looked for it that night it was gone. It must've fallen out. And I saw Eridan a couple days later trying to get into the door—but I thought he was just lost. He must've found the scale while in the storage room and pieced it together…fuck I'm so sorry."

"Fat lot that does us." Karkat grumbled, crossing his arms, "Did they see you?"

"I don't think so." Tavros avoided their gazes, "But Eridan saw me in the storage room, so he probably assumes I have something to do with it."

"Right, well that's settled then. You," Karkat jabbed a finger at Gamzee, "are staying here. And you," he glared at Tavros, "will go to work tomorrow like nothing happened."

"But if Eri-what's his face-thinks Tav has something to do with whatever is going on, then he's in danger." Gamzee protested.

"He'd be in more danger if he stopped showing up for work the day after Eridan tried to steal you." Karkat countered sharply, "Look, we'll talk to Feferi tomorrow and get this shit sorted out. But for now, we need some fucking sleep."

"Okay, I guess I'll head home." The last thing Tavros wanted to do was leave, but there wasn't much else he could do. He knew Karkat would make sure Gamzee was alright, so there was no need for him to linger.

"Tav?" Gamzee said suddenly, as Tavros turned to leave.

Karkat stood up and stretched, "I'll be outside, I want a word with you when you're done here." With that he left, leaving Gamzee and Tavros alone.

Tavros moved in front of Gamzee and knelt, "I'm so sorry about this Gamzee. But Feferi will sort this all out in a day or two—"

"Tav, it's cool." Gamzee said, pushing the hood off his head and ruffling his unruly mane of hair, "I should be the motherfucker apologizing here. I could fuck up your job and get you in some serious shit. I know taking me out of there was big risk." Gamzee smiled crookedly, "But don't you apologize at me brother, this is the first time a motherfucker has been outside since I was a fucking grub."

"A what?"

"Little," Gamzee elaborated, "younger. Sorry, Karkat used to call me a grub when I first came." He grinned toothily, "It's like a whole new fucking world out there, Tav. It's pretty fucking cool."

Tavros smiled, glad at least one of them was having a good time, "I'm glad you get to see it, Gamzee."

Gamzee's smile fell, "I'm not."

"What? I thought you just said it was cool?"

"Yeah bro, it's the coolest shit ever. But the nice thing about living in a room all your life is a motherfucker doesn't know what he's missing. There's nothing to miss, you know? All that motherfucker knows is the life inside a room. But now…" Gamzee's expression turned gloomy, "now I know what's out there. Now I have something to compare my room to; and I wish I'd never left. Because now I know what I'm missing."

Tavros opened his mouth to reassure Gamzee, but felt the words stick like glass in his throat. Gamzee was right. And this was all his fault. "Gamzee…I'm sorry."

"No Tav, don't be sorry." Gamzee smiled down at him, "It was bound to happen sooner or later, I'm just glad it happened with the bros I love, that's all."

The words struck Tavros like a blow, but then just as quickly they washed over him, replacing the shock with a warm, pleasant feeling. "Yeah, me too." He smiled at Gamzee and stood up, "I better get going, I'll see you tomorrow, Gamzee."

"See you, Tav." Gamzee waved and Tavros left, chewing on his lower lip as he closed the front door behind him.

Karkat was waiting outside looking crabby as usual, but there was something else that became apparent as Tavros approached.

"Look, fuckass, I didn't mean to flip my shit at you back there." Karkat bit out as Tavros stopped in front of him, "But that fucker in there is the only friend I've got, so I'm gonna fucking protect his fish-ass until I'm god damn blue in the face. That's why that stupid shit you pulled made me so fucking pissed; because it was _fucking stupid_."

Was Karkat…trying to apologize? Tavros opened his mouth but Karkat rode over him easily.

"If they find him you know what'll happen. And I can't fucking let that happen. Gamzee is…" Karkat trailed off, "special."

"I know." Tavros said quietly, and Karkat looked up at him with a scowl.

"Yeah, I fucking think you do know. So try not to do anything ungodly stupid anymore, okay?"

"Okay," Tavros smiled, "Hey, Karkat?"

"What?"

"You've got more than one friend, you know."

"Shut the hell up, fuckass." Karkat snapped, and then turned and marched back inside.

Tavros chuckled and then set off to find a bus stop that would take him back home.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

The next day Tavros arrived for work feeling even more exhausted than he had last night. He'd gotten home around one in the morning and it had taken hours to finally stop tossing and turning. Tavros yawned loudly as he stepped into the cool building. It was a couple hours before opening time and he needed to feed the Lemon sharks and check up on the expecting mother. He felt like he hadn't been paying so much attention to his job lately because of Gamzee and all, even though he knew he'd been doing everything. Tavros rubbed his eyes and made his way past the storage room to where they kept all the fish—and then froze.

The door was ajar.

Moving back, Tavros frowned as he looked it over. The knob was bent down at almost a 45 degree angle, definitely broken, and a couple screws were on the floor. It looked like the door had been wrenched open. Tavros felt his heart flutter worryingly.

That's right…he'd locked the door when he'd left…shit. Now they would know somebody saw them and locked them in. God dammit why didn't he think these things through!?

But there was no helping it, so Tavros hurried on to grab some fish and tried to forget about the broken door…and the amount of strength needed to rip it open like that.

Once he was in his wet suit and in the Lemon shark tank, Tavros felt a little more relaxed. This was his area. This was something he knew and understood. He fed the sharks carefully, mindful of his fingers and their sharp teeth. As they swam past him he'd brush his hand over their sides, checking them over to make sure they were alright. The pregnant one was coming along just fine, thought it wouldn't be until next year before she had her pups.

Tavros lifted himself out of the tank, his mind already mulling over what would need to be done. She would require a separate tank, of course, with a shallow nursery area. The pups would be born swimming—something that always made Tavros smile—and there could be 5 to 20 of the little rascals. Tavros would need to alert someone of this so they could start finding homes for them all. Maybe a few of them would be released.

The thought of release brought Tavros' mind back to Gamzee and their conversation last night. He brooded over his friend's words…but where they really just friends? Obviously not—you don't have heated make out sessions with friends. Tavros shook his head, stopping that train of thought. No. Hell no. There was enough going on without him tying his brain in knots trying to figure out what sort of relationship he was in.

Tavros walked into the storage area and shut the door, grumbling when it wouldn't close properly, and quickly changed into his clothes. As he left, his heart sped up slightly. Now he had to talk to Feferi. He hadn't seen her since getting hired, and he only knew from Karkat that she was the only other person aware of Gamzee.

God how the hell was this going to work? She didn't know Tavros knew. That alone would be a huge shock. Not to mention he was accusing her business partner of trying to steal Gamzee. This would never work.

But still, he had to try.

For Gamzee's sake.

Tavros knew where Feferi's office was and arrived there quickly—the only thing he forgot was who's office was right outside hers.

"Tavros, stop a minute, I want to ask you somefin."

Shit.

Tavros was a terrible liar. He always had been since birth. When confronted he'd blush, avoid eye contact, squirm around, basically screaming out to the world that he'd done something he shouldn't have.

"Have a seat." Eridan gestured at a couple of chairs in front of his desk. He watched as Tavros sunk into one, studying him through his thick-rimmed glasses.

Tavros' eyes alighted on Eridan for the first time and his eyebrows shot up. There was a large, discolored bruise decorating the left side of Eridan's face, right under his eye and traveling the length of his cheekbone. It looked recent too—the swelling was only just starting to go down.

"Mind if I ask what you're doing around here? You usually work down in the west wing, right?" Eridan said, his tone polite and friendly, thought a little strained.

"I needed to speak with Feferi." Tavros replied in the same, light tone of voice.

"About?"

He couldn't lie. Eridan would see through it in seconds. Tavros thought fast, and then sighed and rubbed his eyes in mock annoyance, "Some buffoon must've tried to get into the storage room where I keep my extra set of dry clothes last night. The door knob is completely broken and the door itself won't even close." He looked up at Eridan with a weary grin, like they were sharing some sort of joke, "You'd think people would realize that locked doors are out of bounds. They must've been pretty determined to get in there!"

"Hmm. Interesting. Was anyfin missing?"

"Missing? No, I guess they just got the wrong room." Tavros shrugged it off.

"Why were you going to Fef instead of, say, the janitor? I'm shore he could fix it in seconds."

"He's is taking today off—he said he caught a nasty cold." Tavros replied smoothly. It was the truth after all. Though he highly doubted 'taking care of this finned fucker' was an actual illness.

"Oh? Whale then I'll make shore she's informed." Eridan smiled thinly, "But before you go, mind if I ask you one last question?"

"Not at all."

"You use that storage room often, correct?"

Tavros could see immediately by the glint in Eridan's eyes where this question was going, "Yes, I keep my spare clothes in there."

"Then you are of course familiar with the door in the back of the room?"

There is was. He sure wasn't being subtle anymore. Maybe it had to do with that nasty looking bruise… "Yeah, sure. Why?"

"Well, just for the porpoise of curiosity, have you ever tried to open it?" Eridan's tone was innocent and his expression was carefully arranged, but the hunger in his eyes made Tavros' stomach lurch.

"Well," Tavros grinned embarrassedly, "when I first came here I tried the door—just out of curiosity—but it was locked. So yeah, I tried but no luck." He shrugged, "Probably holds more filing cabinets or something equally fascinating."

"I sea." Eridan said softly, and Tavros knew in that instant that Eridan did see. He saw through it all, with those dark eyes of his and small smile, but the charade was still going. He knew. And he knew Tavros knew that he knew. But they smiled pleasantly at each other like this was nothing more than a simple chat among friends.

"Well," Eridan said finally, "I'll make shore that door is fixed."

"Thank you," Tavros stood, "I appreciate it."

"Oh, and Tavros?"

"Yes?"

Eridan's smile was a warm as a shark's, "Pass on my whale wishes to the janitor. He hasn't taken a sick day since he came—it must be something serious to keep him at home."

"I'm sure he'll appreciate that." Tavros nodded to him once and left with his heart in his mouth.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

"Well?" Karkat asked, not even waiting for Tavros to shut the front door.

Shutting the door, Tavros just shook his head and retold the past events, omitting the part about himself being unable to lie.

"Well shit. I guess we'll just have to wait until fish face is occupied with something before you try again. I'll go with you too next time, Feferi knows me." Karkat didn't seem too surprised by this turn of events as he moved around, making a tuna sandwich.

Tavros made a face, "You work with fish but you can still eat them?"

"Part of the fucking food chain. This tasty bastard right here is at the part labeled 'dinner'." Karkat held the sandwich up and then took a large bite out of it. "Anyway," he mumbled around the mouthful, "your fish face friend is downstairs."

"Thanks." Tavros smiled and walked down the hall, finding the basement door through trial and error, before proceeding down into the cool room below.

It was a large room set up as a lounge area. A TV was hung on a wall surrounded by comfy looking armchairs and a big couch. The couch had been pulled out to make a bed and the sheets were in disarray as if the person who'd slept there weren't quite sure how to do it. A door at the far end was open, showing part of a full bathtub. But on closer inspection Tavros realized the water held no sign of his friend.

"Hey Tav!"

Tavros turned and smiled at Gamzee, who was hanging out in his wheelchair by the side of the stairs, "Hey, what're you doing in the corner like that?"

"I dunno, feels more comfortable here." Gamzee shrugged and wheeled himself over. He'd been practicing with the chair and by the look of things he hadn't gotten into the tub once. "So how was work?"

Tavros bit his lower lip, "Fine. I wasn't able to talk to Feferi though."

"Ah, that's cool bro. There's always tomorrow."

It may have been just Tavros' imagination, but it seemed like a cloud was lifted from around Gamzee after that. Had he been worried about being taken back? Tavros shook his head and gestured at the bed, "Did you sleep in that?"

"Yep. Weirdest shit ever. Clings to you and makes it hard to move around. Kinda soft and squishy too…" Gamzee eyed the bed like he couldn't make up his mind if he liked it or not.

Tavros felt a grin unfurl across his lips and he leaned down, pressing his lips against Gamzee's cheek, "I missed seeing you at work today."

Gamzee chuckled and pulled him back, kissing him properly, "But you're here now."

"Mhm." Tavros moved to get closer, his lips curling into a more mischievous smile, and then jumped back in shock as Karkat shouted down the stairs.

"Break it up fuckers! I'm coming down!"

Gamzee snickered as Tavros hastily moved back, messing with his shirt and looking ten times guiltier than necessary as Karkat tromped downstairs muttering to himself.

"What's up brother"? Gamzee asked, flicking the tip of his finned tail at Karkat as he came into view.

"I got a call from fish face. Apparently I'm needed at work tomorrow if I'm 'feeling up to it'." Karkat's expression said precisely what he thought of that. "Fucker was kind enough to mention that there was some things I've been putting off that suddenly need to be done."

"It's cool bro, go in and do your job." Gamzee said, only to pause as Karkat made an exasperated noise.

"Is your brain overgrown with allege? Tavros and I will both be stuck at work, and you'll be stuck here. It's not like you can do much of anything by yourself. So, try and use that sodden sponge of a brain and tell me what's going to happen."

Gamzee blinked and glanced at Tavros for help, who just shrugged in confusion.

Karkat stared at them both, "Seriously? God you're both idiots. They'll come when we're not here and take Gamzee." He said slowly and carefully, as though speaking to a couple of five year olds.

"But we're in your home, brother. They can't come here, right?"

"They also can't threaten to fire me if I don't come to work." Karkat said dryly, "I think fish face operates on a different level than most people."

"So what will we do?" Tavros asked, "I can't stay either, that'll just confirm Eridan's suspicions."

Karkat swore and rubbed his eyes, "We're gonna have to move him again…"

"Where? He'll probably check my house too."

"Dammit I wish you'd gotten Fef…" Karkat growled, "I don't have her number…oh! Oh wait I've got an idea. Let's call the Aquarium."

"What?" Tavros frowned, "They won't connect us to Feferi."

"They will if we're another aquarium looking to trade animals." Karkat retorted smartly, smirking, "Feferi deals with that stuff all the time."

Gamzee, feeling a little left out, brought up a rather glaring hole in their plan, "How will you trick them into thinking you're another aquarium? You gotta mention animals and some shit, get your research on so you can all up and be a convincing motherfucker. And don't they know what you motherfuckers sound like?"

"Oh yeah…" Karkat scowled, "Shit."

"Wait, they don't know what all of us sound like." Tavros replied slowly, "They know you, Karkat, but Feferi probably doesn't know me."

"That doesn't matter, Eridan is the one who's gonna pick up the phone." Karkat said shortly.

"I'll do it."

Tavros and Karkat turned to look at Gamzee.

"What? They don't all up and recognize my voice box. You just tell a brother what to say and I'll make the call." Gamzee said simply, shrugging.

"…that might work." Tavros mused slowly.

"Hell no, this fucker doesn't know anything about aquariums!"

"We'll have to teach him." Tavros said, "We don't have much of a choice. We've only got tonight, so we'll have to make the call tomorrow morning. We know everything about the Aquarium, it'll be our information but coming out of a different mouth. Then once we get a hold of Feferi, we tell her what's happening and have her meet us somewhere to take Gamzee to a secure location."

Karkat obviously didn't like it, but there was nothing better they could do. "Fine, what the fuck are we gonna use as our cover?"

"Well…the Lemon shark is gonna have pups soon, we could be another aquarium looking for a couple pups?" Tavros tried, looking at Karkat for his opinion.

"Fine, we've got a reason to call. But what aquarium are we from?" Karkat sat down in one of the chairs and crossed his legs thoughtfully, "We could be from the Mituna Cooperation."

"Me tuna?" Gamzee said blankly.

"Mituna, it's run by one of Feferi's cousins or something I think. You can be a secretary calling on her behalf." Karkat waved his hand, "Okay, now, we're going to have to practice. I'll be the fucker you're calling, Tavros will help you. Ready?"

Gamzee nodded.

"Ring ring motherfucker." Karkat rolled his eyes, "Hello this is the Aquarium, how can I help you?"

Tavros felt inclined to tell Gamzee the real person wouldn't sound so cynical.

"Hey motherfucker, I'm all up and calling about—"

"Stop." Karkat said, "You can't fucking swear. And for fuck's sake try and use some god damn grammar."

"The fuck is that?"

Tavros grinned, "Try saying this; Hello, I'm calling on behalf of the Mituna Cooperation, can I please speak to Feferi Peixes about an animal trade?"

"…say that shit again, but slower." Gamzee said, and listened intently as Tavros repeated himself.

"Let's try again; Hello this is the Aquarium, how can I help you?" Karkat drawled lazily.

"Hey, I'm calling from Mituna, can I speak to Feferi Pixy about an animal trade?"

Tavros raised his hand as Karkat opened his mouth, "Just go with it, keep talking."

Karkat rolled his hands, "What's your name?"

"Gamzee."

"No, you need a fake name. Use something else." Karkat said.

Gamzee blinked, "A different name?" He seemed to drift off, lost in thought, "I…I don't know many other names…" Something tickled the back of his mind, a long forgotten word that might've been a name…but no matter how he tried he couldn't seem to grab it.

"Call yourself something like…oh hell I don't know, Tavros, think of something."

Tavros blinked, "How about Rufio?" He frowned as they both turned to stare at him, "What? You asked for a name!"

"Yeah but…okay whatever, can you remember that?" Karkat turned back to Gamzee.

"Rufio? Sure." Gamzee grinned toothily, "That's a pretty wicked name."

They launched back into the mock phone call, trying those few sentences over and over until they had it down, and then moving on. They went late into the night, running over different scenarios, different questions that might be asked, and a crash course on grammar. It wasn't until two AM did Karkat call it quits.

"That's enough, if this shit is gonna work then we're as ready as we'll ever be. Let's get some sleep." Karkat stood and stretched, his face scrunched up and then smoothing out, "Tavros, you might as well spend the night. Hope you don't mind crashing with the fish."

Gamzee's exhausted expression brightened, "Yeah bro you can all up and share my bed."

Karkat's eyebrow twitched, "You fuckers better not do anything you shouldn't. We've got a big fucking day in a few hours so sleep!"

Tavros felt his cheeks heat up as he hurriedly assured Karkat that nothing was going to happen, and then glared furiously at Gamzee as he started snickering into his hand.

Rolling his eyes, Karkat muttered something and climbed the stairs, shutting the door loudly behind him.

Turning around, Tavros opened his mouth to scold Gamzee only to yelp as the merman grabbed him and yanked him forward, sealing his lips over Tavros'.

Pulling back with a small grin, Gamzee winked at Tavros, "Sorry bro, but I couldn't promise anything to my best bro that I might not keep."

Flushing, Tavros moved back and bit his lower lip, "Gamzee…Karkat was right. We, especially you, need some sleep."

Rolling his eyes, Gamzee smiled at him, "Yeah bro I know, I just all up and wanted to kiss you." Chuckling, he wheeled himself over to the bed and situated himself next to it.

"Need a hand?" Tavros offered, starting forward only to pause as Gamzee's hands gripped the arm rests and the muscles on his back and shoulders rippled as he heaved himself up and onto the bed. With a small grunt, he sat up and flipped his tail onto the bed, then grinned at Tavros.

"Nah bro, I got it."

That maneuver brought back a few memories, making a small smile appear over Tavros' features. He walked over and kicked off his shoes and, after a pause, removed his shirt as well. He slid into bed and watched as Gamzee tried to situate himself with the unfamiliar sleeping materials. Finally he was settled, and Tavros reached over, sliding his arms around Gamzee and nestling down next to him.

"Hey, Tav?"

"Yeah Gamz?"

"I…do you think I'm ready for tomorrow?"

The uncertainty in Gamzee's voice made Tavros raise his head to look at him, "I think you can do it." He said firmly, "You know what to say, we went over it, and Karkat and I will be right there with you the entire time. We won't let anything happen to you, Gamzee. I promise."

A small smile lifted up the corners of Gamzee's lips, "I know you won't, Tav. I trust you."

Tavros felt his heart twist at the words, his eyes moving to the three scars crossing Gamzee's face. It made him feel nauseous to think someone had done that to Gamzee when he was younger. He didn't know the story, but those scars said enough. Leaning over the merman, Tavros pressed his lips softly against Gamzee's.

The tenderness of the gesture made Gamzee smile against his lips, running his hands up Tavros' arms and around his back, pulling him closer. He slid his hands to Tavros' lower back and then up again, just feeling the smoothness of his soft skin.

He loved the feeling of Gamzee's hands on his skin. They felt dry and gentle, exploring his body with the same care and fascination that Tavros himself did for his sharks. He pressed closer, their chests brushing as he tried to get closer. Tavros made a soft sound as he felt Gamzee's lip part, his tongue flicking out curiously, tracing the seam of his lips.

Deepening the kiss, Gamzee moaned quietly as he felt Tavros shift on top of him, trapping him beneath his body. The heat that radiated off his skin onto Gamzee's cooler body was delicious, and the merman couldn't get enough.

Tavros' hands roamed down Gamzee's chest, fingers dripping into the familiar curves of his body, pausing as the skin faded into scales. He rested his hands at Gamzee's waist, rubbing small circles with his thumbs, the kiss becoming more passionate as Gamzee continued making those little needy sounds.

"Mnh, Tav…" Gamzee let his head roll back as Tavros kissed down this neck, running this tongue over the collarbone. He shivered as he felt Tavros' lips and tongue move down his body, tracing the white lines over his torso until they faded and disappeared at his sternum.

It was different somehow, having Gamzee on a bed instead of in the water. It felt more…real, somehow. Like those times in the pool were something out of a fairy tale, while this felt was solid, like running your fingers over reality. But it was starting to get out of hand when Gamzee's tail moved up, rubbing between his legs accidentally and making him gasp.

Gamzee, hearing the sound, mimicked the action with his tail again, his eyes darkened as Tavros let out a low moan. "Tav…"

"G-Gamzee, stop…" Tavros panted, "We can't…I mean it's…" He didn't know how to say it, how to try and explain how badly he wanted him but at the same time how they shouldn't. He didn't even know why anymore, but that look Gamzee was giving him made delicious chills run over his body.

"Tavros." Gamzee said softly, his golden eyes dark. His hands moved up and down Tavros' arms, nails gently scratching and making Tavros shiver, "It's okay..." He bit his lower lip and then ran his hands down to where Tavros' was, "I want you to…I…" he stopped, his sentence trailing off.

"Gamz…" Tavros pressed his lips against Gamzee's, loving how they molded together, before moving back and sighing softly, "I don't know how it's going to work…"

Gamzee's eyes flickered and he sat up, moving back so he was resting against the couch. He watched as Tavros straddled his lower tail and then moved his hands to the center of his tail, around upper thigh level, "It's…I'm sure it's different but…"

The worry was back in his voice, and Tavros felt a pang go through his chest. He moved up and kissed Gamzee sweetly, running his hands through that wild, thick curly hair until he felt the merman relax again. Pulling back, Tavros gently moved his hands back to that spot and felt the scales there. They were different, he realized, softer and more pliable. There was a slight dip, almost like there was a groove in the muscle. He continued running his fingers over it, not at all sure what he was doing, until he felt the scales ripple under his touch.

Gamzee watched, completely still, as Tavros stroked and touched the sensitive scales until they finally dipped in and parted, revealing his bulge. He didn't know much about human anatomy, but Gamzee was certain that this was extremely weird for Tavros.

It was a tentacle. Tavros blinked in surprise, watching as the slick, purple tentacle pushed out from between the lavender scales, twisting around. Hesitantly, he reached for it, letting his finger tips brush over it gently. It felt slick too, like there was a layer of lube over it. Tavros' fingers pulled away, and he saw a light purple liquid on his finger tips. The tentacle reacted at the touch, moving almost independently towards Tavros. This time, Tavros met it half way and let it touch his hand. It immediately wrapped around his hand and wrist, sliding along it and pulsing with a warm wetness.

A shudder went through Gamzee's body as Tavros tenderly explored his bulge, those soft, hesitant touches making him want to moan for more. But he didn't want to scare Tavros off, so he bit down on his lower lip and let him take his agonizing time.

Tavros gently squeezed it, trying to get a feel for its reactions. It pulsed and squirmed, curling itself tighter around his wrist. He slowly stroked it, the genetic material acting like lube as he let it push between his fingers and slide up his inner arm. It wasn't until he heard a low, keening moan that Tavros realized what he was going. He snapped his head up, an apology hovering at his lips, only for it to die as he caught sight of Gamzee.

The merman's head was thrown back, his cheeks flushed and lips parted, panting heavily. Gamzee's hands were clenched in the sheets and he was practically trembling as his bulge slowly shoved its way between a few fingers.

A flash of longing surged through Tavros, and he tightened his grip on the tentacle, making the hole in his fist smaller for it to squirm through.

A low moan tore from Gamzee's mouth, followed by a breathy, "Motherfuck…" His eyes, dark and full of lust, met with Tavros', "Tav, shit bro you make me feel all kinds of good…" His fingers uncurled from the sheets and gripped Tavros' wrist, "Let me all up and touch you too, Tavros…"

Tavros felt a shiver run up his spine, his hand stilling but the bulge still squirming in his grasp. He felt Gamzee's hands move down, settling on his pants and slowly opening them. He released Gamzee and helped take them off, pausing with his hands on his boxers. "I…I look different than you…"

"I know Tav." Gamzee smiled up at him and ran his hands over Tavros' arms comfortingly, "It's okay." He watched as Tavros let out a small breath before finally taking them off. His eyes fell on Tavros' human bulge, surprised by how it looked. Reaching forward, Gamzee hesitated and glanced up, "Can I…?"

Tavros nodded silently, and then sucked in a sharp breath as Gamzee's hand wrapped around him.

Gamzee was extremely careful of his claws, using the pads of his fingers to run over the soft, silky member. He wrapped his fingers around it and used his palm to run over the bulge, watching Tavros for a reaction. He certainly got it when Tavros moaned and shifted his hips up into his hand, trying to get more friction. Gamzee spread his fingers over the length of the shaft, using the webbing between his fingers to give Tavros more of what he wanted.

"Hnnng, Ga-Gamzee…!" Tavros tried to bite back his sounds but the way that dry, smooth hand worked him over until the sounds spilled forth on their own. He couldn't help but rock his hips forwards, only to whine softly as Gamzee's hand pulled away.

"Tav, come here." Gamzee murmured, gripping his hips and pulling him onto his lap, letting Tavros' legs wrap around his waist. His bulge immediately found Tavros', twining around it and making them both groan, "Ahh shit, Tavros…"

"Gamzee." Tavros gasped, then moaned and rolled his hips forwards, his lips seeking out Gamzee's as he heard that tantalizing keening moan again.

Gamzee clung to Tavros desperately, moaning into his mouth as his bulge twisted around Tavros' member, sliding along it and smearing genetic material over the shaft. "T-Tavros…it feels…you feel amazing."

A low moan tore from Tavros' lips, hips moving rhythmically against Gamzee as his release tightened with every twist of the tentacle, "I can't…mnggh Gamzee….!" He felt Gamzee's hands wrap around him, pressing him closer as it's movements became more rough and hurried, making Tavros have to fight to keep his moans down.

"Tavros!" Gamzee called out, his bulge contracting once before he released his genetic material over them both, moaning as he felt Tavros' fingers tangle in his hair, lips hot against his neck to muffle the sound of his own name being called in response.

Tavros made a small sound as the tentacle withdrew from his spent member, disappearing back behind the scales once more and leaving them in a sticky mess. But he made no attempt to move, just rested his head on Gamzee's shoulder as the merman ran his hands over his body, making a soft rumbling sound deep in his chest that made Tavros smile.

Finally, they drew apart, faces flushed and eyes dark as they looked over one another, memorizing every little detail. Gamzee's eyes were half lidded, the gleaming gold slits basking in deep satisfaction as he rubbed Tavros' back softly. "Tav?"

"Yeah, Gamzee?" Tavros murmured, making a small noise as he moved off of Gamzee's tail and nestled beside him, pulling the merman down into his arms.

Gamzee instantly pressed against him, skillfully maneuvering the soiled sheet off the bed, snagging a blanket as a replacement before turning back to Tavros, looking uncharacteristically nervous, "Would…would you be my matesprit?"

"Matesprit?" Tavros frowned at the unfamiliar word, "What is that?"

Gamzee looked up from resting his head on Tavros' chest, "Humans don't have that? It's like a…well fuck I don't know how to all up and explain it." He frowned, glancing away and staring off, obviously remembering something from a while ago. Finally he said, "It's like when two bros want to be together and do that kind of stuff we do. Mates, I guess." He added, looking a little sheepish.

"Oh, you mean boyfriends." Tavros said, feeling his heart flutter worryingly at the term, "Matesprit…yeah I'd like to be your Matesprit." The smile that broke across Gamzee's face made Tavros blush, unused to the feeling of being able to make someone look that happy.

"Aw fuck Tav, really?" Gamzee kissed him before Tavros could answer, already knowing what he'd say. When he broke away Gamzee was making the soft rumbling noise again, looking like the time when Tavros had taken him outside for the first time. It was nothing short from pure elation.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven **

"Alright, we got one fucking shot at this. Fish face, keep your shit together, okay?"

Gamzee nodded from his place at the table, smiling briefly at Tavros before picking up the phone. He was seated on the first floor in his wheelchair, surrounded by his matesprit and best bro. His hand didn't shake as he punched the buttons, which might have had something to do with Tavros' hand on his knee under the table.

The phone rang twice before someone picked it up, "_This is the Aquarium, how may I help you?_"

Gamzee swallowed, and then steadied himself as he felt Tavros give him a reassuring squeeze, "Hi, I'd like to speak to Feferi about some Lemon sharks and a possible trade."

Karkat winced, mouthing, "You forgot to say who you were!"

Gamzee's eyes widened but the person was already speaking, "_I'll page you through. Who is calling?_"

"Rufio, from Mituna."

"_Right, just give me a second and I'll have you paged over._"

Gamzee grinned broadly and flashed them a thumbs up, which earned two sets of smiles.

"_Hello this is the Aquarium, how may I help you?_"

"Is this Feferi? I'm Rufio, calling from Mituna about some Lemon sharks." Gamzee said as the voice on the other end answered.

There was a slight pause, then the voice pitched itself slightly higher, as though in recognition, "_Yes this is Feferi! What would you like to know about our sharks?"_

Gamzee nodded and grinned, signaling he'd finally gotten to Feferi. That was a lot easier than he'd been expecting. Now to finally tell her everything and go back…back to that cage…Gamzee didn't speak for a minute. He knew, from Karkat's own explanations, that Feferi had been the one to save him. He himself didn't really remember much of anything from that day…just certain flashes every now and then…and a half forgotten name…

A squeeze on his knee alerted him he'd been zoning out, and Gamzee quickly made a decision. "…Feferi, I know this is going to sound hard to believe, but just hear me out. I'm not some motherfucker from Me Tuna or whatever. I'm that…that person you saved a while ago. On a boat. I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. My friends saved me a couple nights ago from someone called Erin—oh, sorry, Eridan, who wanted to steal me…Look, I'm at a friend's house right now, but if you could…I dunno, do something? That'd be all kinds of motherfucking helpful."

After everything Tavros and Karkat had been through, this was the least Gamzee could do in return.

"_Oh…well yes I did notice you were missing. Look, tell your friends to meet me at the east docks in an hour, alright? Come alone and try to make yourselves inconspicuous. How many are you?"_

"Three, including myself."

" _Alright, see you then._" The line went dead, and Gamzee set the phone down with a feeling of dread. "She said to all up and meet at the east docks in an hour. Be all sneaky like, and such."

"Fucking fantastic." Karkat groaned in relief, leaning back in his chair and grinning, "Holy shit Gamzee, you actually fucking did it." He laughed and grinned at him, shaking his head in wonderment.

Tavros just smiled at him, which made Gamzee feel a little better.

But when they looked away to discuss how they were going to get there, the smile fell from Gamzee's lips. He sat in his chair and brooded silently; letting the other two bask in their victory.

Gamzee had on Tavros' sweatshirt again as they drove to the harbor, taking the back streets to avoid any traffic or prying eyes who might notice a purple skinned person in the back of the car. They were completely silent as Karkat drove them to the docks, everyone's mind on a similar subject.

Tavros had opted for sitting in the back with Gamzee this time, and has his tail across his lap, covered by a blanket. He was absentmindedly running his hands over the slick scales, gazing out the window. Something had occurred to him, as they'd started this trip to the docks. Feferi was going to move Gamzee to a safer location, which meant he wouldn't be in the Aquarium anymore. Sure, she could just fire Eridan—but he already knew about the room and could easily tell other people. So of course he would be moved somewhere.

Somewhere were Tavros couldn't see him anymore.

Tavros glanced at Gamzee, but the merman's eyes were closed. He had on a pained expression, which made Tavros wonder if being out of the water this long might be hurting him.

"Get your shit around you, we're here." Karkat announced, pulling into the entrance way of the east docks. "Okay, I'll sit with the car in case some fucker tries to tow it, which means you fuckers need to find Fef on your own. Can you handle that?"

Tavros smiled thinly, "I think we'll manage."

Gamzee shifted his tail off Tavros' lap without a word, straightening up in his seat as his Matesprit got out of the car and went to the trunk, pulling out the wheelchair.

Brining it around to the side of the car, Tavros opened the door and situated it, letting Gamzee haul himself into the chair. He knew from personal experience that offering to help would be unwelcomed. He watched as Gamzee situated himself in the chair, adjusting the blanket over his tail so it covered every scale.

They both looked up at the sound of a car door opening, surprised to see Karkat stepping out. He scowled at both of them, "What? Can't a fuckass say goodbye?"

Tavros backed away out of earshot, watching as Karkat stuffed his hands in his pockets and looked down at Gamzee, not yet talking.

They stayed like that for a bit, until Gamzee said something and Karkat laughed shortly, then said something with a small smile. Karkat reached out and touched Gamzee's shoulder, his smile faltering slightly and then walked back to the car without another word.

Tavros came back over, looking down at Gamzee, "Everything okay?"

"Fine, bro." Gamzee said quietly, staring after Karkat forlornly.

"…are you okay?"

Gamzee shrugged, picking at the blanket, "Let's just hurry up, yeah?"

"Okay." Tavros gripped the handles and pushed Gamzee away towards where the docks were, glancing back in time to see Karkat watching them with a strange expression on his face. Then they were out of sight from the car.

The docks were completely empty, nothing but white sail boats tied up for the week. The smell of salt permeated the air, along with the cries of seagulls that seemed to catch Gamzee's attention. They walked along the docks, not quite sure what to look for, though Gamzee seemed to be getting agitated. After a bit of watching him twist around, staring at random things with a confused expression, Tavros finally spoke up.

"Gamz, what's wrong? You're acting weird."

"That smell…" Gamzee said, so quietly Tavros almost missed it, "What is it…"

"The ocean." Tavros replied, feeling a small stab of guilt. Was it triggering something in Gamzee? A longing for home? But he wasn't quite sure, especially when Gamzee's tail began to flick nervously under the blanket.

"No…not the ocean…something else."

Tavros sniffed the air, not smelling anything out of the ordinary. There was just the smell of boats, ocean, and the crisp breeze. Salt carried on the breeze, with a hint of motor oil from a dingy, no doubt. But whatever it was seemed to be working Gamzee up something fierce. "Gamzee, hey, what's going on?"

"I…I dunno Tav…something…something is…" Gamzee made a small sound, like a low growl, and twisted around in his seat.

"Gamzee, what—?"

"Ah, there you two are. How nice of you to leave your otter friend behind, that'll make this so much easier."

Tavros stiffened. He'd recognize those horrible fish puns anywhere. He looked over his shoulder and felt his heart stop momentarily at the sight of the people walking towards him. It looked like they'd come off that large fishing boat at the end of the dock, which meant they'd been waiting.

Two young men were leading the trio, dressed in similar clean, but simple suits and matching purple ties. But it was clear even from the distance that it was the third man who was leading the party. Tavros recognized him instantly, even though the last time he'd seen him it had been a brief glimpse of his back.

He was tall, with a strong, cruel face and hard eyes. He was broad shouldered with large, workman's hands. But despite of the weathered look, he was dressed pristinely in a tailored suit, with numerous rings on his fingers.

One of the men Tavros hadn't seen before, with two zigzagging scars over his eye and a nasty smirk curled around a cigarette.

"Ampora." Tavros said stiffly, his mind racing. If he could somehow get to the water, he could toss Gamzee in and then…what? He couldn't run. He hadn't run since before the accident. So maybe he'd dive in too? But those thoughts were erased when he noticed the slight bump in the smoking guy's suit jacket. It could be a gun…and he didn't want to take that chance with Gamzee.

"Nitram." Eridan sneered, his eyes gleaming maliciously. But before he could say anything else, his father spoke.

"Enough of this bullshit, grab the thing and get rid of the boy."

Gamzee, who'd been silent the entire time, now spoke up, "I remember you." His voice was hesitant, unsure, but with a sharp edge that Tavros hadn't heard before.

Eridan and the other guy, who might've been his brother, moved forward briskly towards them.

Tavros stepped in front of Gamzee, watching them approach with a sense of dread. He couldn't take them. He might've been able to take down Eridan, but that other guy…he didn't like the look of his expression.

"Tavros," Gamzee snapped, "get out of here."

"No."

Karkat sighed and leaned on the steering wheel, his mind mulling over his friend. Gamzee would be taken to a safer spot, somewhere new, with a nice big pool. But who would get his ball for him when that stupid fucker knocked it up to the rafters? Who knew his favorite color was red? Who knew that he liked to talk to people? That he needed company?

With a growl he snapped himself out of it. It was for the best—he needed to stop being such a little bitch and deal with it.

His phone rang suddenly, startling Karkat from his thoughts. With a sigh he pulled it out, not bothering to glance at the name before flipping it open. After all, it could only be so many people. "What?"

"_Oh! Karkat! Hi there!_"

Karkat blinked, "Feferi?"

"_Yeah! I heard you were out for tuna days! Are you feeling alright?"_

A cold feeling settled in Karkat's gut, "…Fef, where are you?"

"_Work! Where else?_"

"Oh shit. And Eridan?"

"_He must've caught what you have too. He's out._"

Karkat was out of the car and running before she even finished her sentence, "Fuck oh fuck no, TAVROS!" He raced towards the docks, looking around wildly while Feferi's voice babbled in his ear. "Shit! Feferi get down to the east docks right fucking now. It's an emergency."

"_I…alright I'll be right there._"

He snapped his phone shut and swore, looking around for any clue as to where they might've gone. He jogged to the docks, eyes roving frantically over the boats and docks for any sign of his friends. Something limp and gray caught his eye a few yards away, and he raced over only to find Tavros' discarded sweatshirt.

"Oh hell." Karkat looked around, his pulse racing. It didn't take a fucking genius to figure out what happened here. Gamzee wouldn't have recognized Feferi's voice, and fuck did Eridan sound like a woman sometimes. No fucking wonder it had been so easy.

He looked up, his eyes narrowed as he looked over the boats, spotting what he was looking for in minutes.

A single boat driving off towards the open waters.

"Gamzee."

Karkat turned sprinted towards the end of the dock, skidding to a halt as the wood ran out, leaving him miles away from his friends. "Fuck. FUCK!"

"Karkat!"

Karkat whipped around, expecting Feferi, but there was nobody there. He paused, listening intently. He knew he'd heard it.

"Hello? Is that you, Karkat?"

The voice came from below him, and Karkat turned to stare at a boat, drifting nonchalantly against the pier. Not giving a shit that he had no business on somebody else's boat, he hopped into the galley and crouched down, frowning as he spotted the way below deck. It had been bolted shut from the outside, typical if you were leaving your boat from the weekend. Reaching out, he rapped his knuckles on the wood, "Tavros?"

"Karkat!"

Not sparing a second to think, Karkat stood up and snapped, "Get away from the door!" before bringing his foot violently down on the cheap plywood. It splintered on the first blow, and then gave way with a loud crack on the second kick. Grinning triumphantly, Karkat leapt down below decks, "I haven't done that since high school."

"Karkat they have Gamzee! It's Eridan and his, uh, family I think. They took him and got on their boat—!"

"I know, Fefer is coming now as I speak—shit Tavros. What the fuck happened to you?"

Tavros had a grim look of satisfaction on his face, "I put up more of a fight then either of them thought I could."

"Well shit, good for you fuckass." Karkat surveyed the black eye, busted lip, and bloody nose with a grin. Judging by how Tavros was holding himself, he'd be black and blue all over tomorrow. But today was what mattered. "Come on, get out so we can go get Gamzee back."

Karkat scrambled out of the boat and then turned around, helping Tavros out. He wrapped an arm around him, letting Tavros use him as support as they waited at the dock. Karkat would periodically glance between the entrance of the gate and the rapidly shrinking boat, mentally keeping track of the time as Gamzee moved further and further away.

"Let me go! Let me go you motherfucking pieces of—!" Gamzee's snarls were cut off by the sharp crack of a hand across his face, stunning him momentarily.

"I forgot how irritating your voice is." The man sneered, watching as Gamzee glared at him furiously, "Is that anyway for you to behave at a reunion? Didn't that slimy scaled father of yours teach you any manners before I turned him into fish food?"

Gamzee stared at him, torn between revulsion and confusion, "What the motherfuck are you talking about? Get the hell off my, you sick fuck!"

"You don't remember." The man stared at Gamzee with a hungry expression, amusement slicing through his gaze like a torpedo through water, "How ironic. Cronus, I think it's time for a family reunion, don't you?"

"Sure thing, Dad." Cronus grinned, his muscles straining from holding the thrashing fishman. For someone as lanky as this fucker, he could sure put up a fight. "Come on, you fish fuck."

"And Cronus," the man said, his voice changing into something far more threatening, "I don't want a single scale on him harmed. He's to be in pristine condition, understand?"

Gamzee hissed angrily as he felt the man's thick arms contract around him, keeping his arms pinned to his sides.

"Aye aye, Captain." Cronus said gruffly, and then hauled the thrashing merman away in a fit of snarling and hissing. He headed below decks, grunting as Gamzee's tail smacked the wall and nearly unbalanced him. In response he tightened his grip until he heard bones crack warningly, accompanied by a high pitched hiss of pain. "Yeah that's right, shut the hell up."

Gamzee tried to twist around to bite him, but Cronus had him completely pinned.

The interior of the boat was startlingly posh. Wood gleaned and bronze sparkled as Cronus dragged Gamzee to the main attraction; a massive tank built into the back of the boat. A small set of stairs was by the side of it, and Cronus mounted them and, with a groan, tossed Gamzee into the water with a sizable splash.

It felt good to be back in his natural setting, and Gamzee might've enjoyed the familiar cool kiss of the water over his skin if it hadn't been for the fact he'd just been stolen. He swam up against the glass and a loud, feral growl tore from his throat as he watched Cronus retreat. Gamzee pounded his fists against the glass, making dull 'thump'ing noises travel throughout the massive tank.

As the sound bounced back, Gamzee suddenly went completely still.

There was something in here with him.

Whipping around, Gamzee pressed back into his corner and snarled ferociously, only for it to cut off midway as he realized what was floating in front of him.

He was larger than Gamzee, but otherwise looked hauntingly like him. His back was a dark purple, graduating into a light lavender streak on his stomach and underneath his tail. His markings, those lines on his torso and cuffs on his arms, were the same, along with the claws, sharp teeth, and yellow eyes. But the facial markings were completely different.

Instead of the small white line tips that Gamzee had on his forehead, this one's white markings came all the way down to his cheeks, forming a strange, almost skull like pattern on his face.

He was staring at Gamzee in shock, silently hovering there, his tail gently sweeping back and forth.

"W-what the hell?!" Gamzee shouted, though his words were lost underwater.

The other merman flinched, snapping out of whatever trance he'd been in, and then raised his hands, palms out.

A gesture of peace.

Gamzee shrunk back into the corner, staring in fascination and horror at the merman in front of him. He'd never seen himself before, though he knew what he looked like. But to see another one…

Something tickled the back of his mind again, that name, but with a new urgency.

"Who are you?" Gamzee whispered. Though the words were lost, the meaning was clear.

A look of unbearable sadness formed on the creatures face, and he sunk down to the bottom of the tank and stared mournfully at Gamzee. He opened his mouth and silently mouthed, "You don't remember me?"

Gamzee shook his head mutely, watching with wide golden eyes as the other merman gazed up at him.

"You don't remember our father?" The merman asked, his eyes pleading silently as he mouthed the words, "You don't remember me, Gamzee?"

"Stoppit, stop what are you talking about?" Gamzee wailed, bubbles flying silently from his lips. He slid away from him and swam to the other side of the tank. "I have to get out! I have to find Tavros! Tavros…" Gamzee made a strangled sound as he remembered his Matesprit being dragged off by that fucker with the scars. "Tavros, Tavros I'm so sorry…" He sunk to the bottom of the tank, curling his tail under him and leaning against the chilly glass.

The other merman watched him, and then slowly swam forwards, stopping a fair distance from Gamzee. He sat there, watching Gamzee claw at the glass and keen mournfully, his own face mirroring the agony Gamzee felt.

After a while, Gamzee stopped. He knew it was useless. So he turned to the silent merman and pointed upwards, towards the open top, "We can talk up there, if you want."

He shook his head slowly, and then opened his mouth.

Gamzee hissed and recoiled, eyes huge, "Shit! Shit what the fuck happened to you?"

Closing his mouth, the merman pointed outwards silently and mouthed, "Ampora."

Gamzee blinked, and then slowly reached up and traced his fingers over the three scars across his face, "Ampora…" Something was there, something just at the tip of his memory, boiling over, waiting for that one final push. "Who are you?" He asked, looking at the merman, "Who are you to me?"

The merman reached down and began to trace words in the fake sand, spelling out the thing that had been ripped from Gamzee all those years ago.

Shifting closer, careful not to disturb the letters, Gamzee read out, "My name is Kurloz. I'm your…" he looked up, his eyes huge, "brother."

And it all came back.


End file.
